Waiting in the Wings
by marybelle
Summary: Bella didn't jump alone. Edward hasn't come back... yet. Mid New Moon. Not like other cliches, you won't be disappointed. Sort of a mix of JxB and ExB. Now Complete!
1. Preface

**Disclaimer: I don't own.**

**Waiting in the Wings - Preface**

I couldn't move, couldn't breathe. My eyes were frozen on the spot, and they wouldn't close.

How could he have left me, now, in my time of need?

Then she started advancing on me, and then I found my breath again, coming out in little sharp _gasp, gasp, gasp, gasps._

Her wild red orange hair whipped around her unsmiling face, and then she said, "Now, Bella, you are very lucky I happened upon you tonight." I said nothing, so she continued. "I had something much more… fun, per se, planned for you, but I'm afraid I'll have to save that for some other… err… _lucky_ human…."

She laughed, and I was too mortified to care. At that moment, I knew it was all over. A million unbidden thoughts, shoved into the back of my mind, exploded into my head, and I was getting dizzy. I gasped as I saw my life flash before my eyes, and I thought about all the people that I loved… that I would not see again… Jake… and even worst, the boy who I clung to, even after he broke my heart… I love you, Edward.

She lowered her head and sunk her teeth into my throat.

The fire was back again, and this time, it was worse. Why? Possibly it was because this time, my neck was being bitten, instead of my hand. But I didn't know, nor did I care. I hurt too much to care.

I wanted to scream, I wanted to fight. But even now, I knew that that was what she wanted. I would not give her that satisfaction. There was another reason, also. It was stupid, but in the last few moments of my life, I wanted to be like Carlisle. The thought almost made me smile, and then, she started to drain me.

I gasped as the pain suddenly multiplied. I felt as though I was drowning in a pool of molten lava, with a million knives piercing my skin.

But still, I didn't say anything. I didn't know how – or even _if _– this was humanly possible. Maybe because I wasn't fully human any longer.

Suddenly, the pain multiplied by tenfold as she ripped her head from my body. I dropped to the ground, crumpled and bleeding, gasping for the breath that was hard to come by. I barely had the strength to look up, to see her grimacing in horror at some thing that I could not see.

She turned to flee, but then, something hard and huge smacked into her, shaking the very ground, creating a gigantic rumble of thunder. I heard a sound that sounded like metal being ripped apart, and a bloodcurdling scream erupted somewhere behind me.

I slowly tried to stand up, but then quickly realized that I was too weak. The pain was creeping down my body, and I collapsed once more.

"_Bella!"_

"_It's too late."_

"_Shut up!"_

"_I'm sorry. She's gone."_

"NO!"

"Phase Back."

I faintly recognized the voices, and then meekly tried to give comforting words. I opened my mouth, but everything went black, and I moved no more.


	2. The Beach

**Disclaimer: I don't own.**

**Waiting in the Wings – The Beach (Chapter I)**

"_Knock, knock!"_

I opened my heavy eye lids and found my alarm clock, which read 6.15 AM. I groaned and then threw it against my bedroom door. "Go away."

The door opened and Charlie came sauntering through my little threshold. "Bells wake up."

"But dad, it's _Saturday!_ You're supposed to let me sleep in, remember?" This was especially true this morning. For the first time in a long time, I slept without _his_ face constantly looming in the distance, always in sight, but never in reach.

"Get out of bed, Honey. I'm going fishing this morning with Billy, and Jake said that he's going to take you cliff diving."

I immediately sat up, resulting in the room spinning. I was totally awake now, and for once, I was excited, for two reasons. One, I got to spend a little bit of time with Jake. And two, cliff diving was extremely stupid and reckless. I was sure to hear his voice. I hesitated before I said anything, and Charlie misunderstood me.

"Yeah, cliff diving is going to be pretty scary. I don't think _I _could take it. But Billy said that it was totally safe, lifeguards all along the coast, clear skies. And it's going to be warmer than usual to day. And besides, with Jake, I think there's more chance of you being bitten by a Vampire than drown," Charlie laughed.

Of course, Charlie thought he was being sarcastic. But I cringed nonetheless as the hole ripped it self open once again. Charlie noticed, and backed away.

"But if you don't want to go, I can call Jake and tell him –"

"No, Charlie, it's fine. I'm going."

"You sure, Bells?"

"Totally. Give me five minuets," and with that I hopped out of my bed and started picking out clothes from my dresser drawers.

"'Kay. Jake will be here in about half an hour, alright?"

"Okay, Dad. Go eat."

And with that, Charlie shut my door and trod down the stairs. _Now… what to wear._ I picked through my drawers, and threw out a pair of shorts and a T-shirt. Because we were going to be in the water, I picked out my only two-piece. I sighed, as I generally strayed away of showing my stomach, but all of my one-pieces were all in the wash. I didn't quite know why; I never wore them, as there was no-where to swim besides the beaches. I walked over to my bed where my clothes lay, and quickly running over to lock the door, changed into my bathing suit and put my clothes on over it. After I was all dress I quickly ran into the bathroom to fix my hair and wash my face.

As soon as I knew that this was one of those days where it decided it was going to be impossible, I pulled it up into a hair tie and then walked down the stairs. To my surprise, Jake was already sitting on the sofa, watching a tape recording of the most recent football game. (Had I taken over a half an hour?) He was nodding off, and the remote was slipping out of his hands. I smiled for the first time in a week.

"Hey, Jake!"

"Wha..? Oh! Hey, Bella! You ready to go?"

"As ready as I'll ever be. Let's go jump of three-million-feet high cliffs!" I said with slightly-mocking enthusiasm. Jake snickered and shut the TV off.

I grabbed his keys off the kitchen counter and threw them at him. "Let's go," I said as he stood up. I walked over to the kitchen, quickly grabbing a granola bar for a makeshift breakfast.

"I'll be in the car, alright?" he said as the door shut. I quickly opened the wrapper and shoved it in my mouth, opening the fridge and deciding that I could chase it down with the remainder of the milk in the carton. Five minuets later, I was walking out to the Rabbit. When I opened the door, there was a song playing in the radio that I recognized.

…_It's the perfect day,_

_Tomorrow's gonna come too soon_

_I could say forever as I am_

_Sun's down_

_A little after ten_

_I pick up all my friends_

_In my Mercedes-Benz…_

As I got in the car, Jake reached for the dial and said, "Sorry. I forgot that you didn't like music."

I cringed and then said, "No, that's fine. I actually like this song. A little." I tried not to emphasize the word _little._ I turned the music back up and actually started singing along. I was totally shocked with myself, and I was definitely not the only person.

"So…"

"So what?" I asked.

"You're singing again."

"Yeah?"

"So does this mean… I mean, well… are you over… _them_ yet?"

In that moment, all of my happiness evaporated and was replaced by physical pain from the ripping hole. How could he think that?

"Jacob Black, turn the friggin' car around."

"Okay, so I guess that's a no."

I looked straight ahead, shut my eyes, and exhaled sharply. "Of course I'm not. Now turn the damn car around. _Now,"_ my voice was full of acid. I seriously wanted to be a million miles away from everyone, starting with Jake.

And it worked, to some extent. Jake pulled over and I could feel his eyes boring into the side of my face. I was still looking at the windshield.

"Listen, Bella, I am _so_ sorry. Seriously," and he sounded like he was. But it wasn't enough to heal the whole.

"Jake, I _know_ you are. And so am I, truly. It's just… _so_ hard for me to talk about that, or even _think_ about it. Don't you get that?"

He sighed, and then nodded. "I just wish it wasn't so hard. I wish you could get over him, and open your eyes to what you_ have, _Bella. To _me."_

I groaned inwardly. Did he have to do this now? "Listen, Jake, I love you. You know that, right? But I could say the same thing about Charlie, or Renee, or Billy. You guys are _family._ I'm so sorry if that isn't enough for you, but it's all I'm capable of right now._"_

"Yeah, Bells, I know. I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry, too, Jake."

We sat there for a couple minuets before Jake turned the car back on and pulled back onto the road.

"So, are you still up to going?"

I nodded, and said, "Let's do this thing!"

After that, thankfully, Jake left me to my own thoughts, and he turned the radio off again. We rode in silence until we got to the Beach.

I got out of the car, and then gazed upon the waters of First Beach. It was so beautiful, so calm and peaceful. It was hard for me to believe that something could exist like this, in perfect harmony with everything around it.

"Come on, Bella!"

Jake yelled, pulling me back into reality. He was already in his shorts and bare feet, and I realized that I shouldn't jump off the cliff in my t-shirt. So I pulled it off over my head, and then my shorts, to reveal my Burgundy bikini. I walked up to Jake and slipped my hand into his, gripping it hard.

"You ready to do this?"

I nodded, and started advancing to the cliff. Jake must have thought that I wasn't going fast enough, so he scooped me up in his warm arms, and started running toward the edge of the cliff.

"JAKE! Holy crow! _Put me down!"_

He started laughing, and then I did, too. When I got scared, the Hysteria usually came around. Like now. I _almost_ didn't notice his beautifully scolding velvet soft voice coming into my head.

"Bella! Stop, you'll kill yourself!"

_How can I stop? I'm being held against my will here._ Honestly.

"Start screaming!"

_That'll just encourage him. And besides, I'm having fun._

"Bella, _please!_ Don't do this!"

_You wanted me to get on with my life. _

"Yes – But not like this!"

"_Watch me."_

Whoops. Had I said that out lout? Oh well. I wasn't sure, as I could hardly hear myself think. At any rate, Jake didn't notice. I supposed he was too preoccupied with not falling off the side of the cliff. I only noticed he wasn't running any longer when he set me gingerly on my feet and took my hand again.

"Three… Two… ONE!"

Oh, Crap.

Jake jumped off the cliff, pulling me with him. I knew I must have looked like an idiot, flying off the cliff like that. Only now did I fully realize how very _high_ the cliff was. I started to scream, but it was not out of fear. For the first time in a while, I was really having a lot of fun.

I closed my eyes, and waited for the impact of the water hitting my body. I could have been falling for ten seconds, or even ten minuets. I didn't know. But I did know when the surprisingly still, warm water engulfed my body. I lingered there for a couple of seconds, then Jake started tugging on my hand. Then I realized that I needed to breathe. So I started kicking, and after a minuet, my head broke the surface.

"Bella? Are you alright?"

Jake looked at me with alarm clearly written in his eyes.

"Let's do that again!!" I said with as much energy as I could muster. Jake started laughing, and said, "First we have to get you back up there!" Jake helped tow me back to the shore, and we made our way up to the cliff again.

We jumped off the cliff again and again, having fun and hanging out. Finally, at about Eleven thirty, we sat in the Rabbit, and Jake pulled out a picnic basket from the back seat, that had sandwiches and a bunch of snack food inside of it. Then I realized how exhausted and hungry I was. I pulled out a sub sandwich, and devoured the whole thing in about five minuets.

"Wow, Bells. I didn't know you could eat like that!"

"What, just'because I'm a girl means I have to starve and then purge any food I _do_ eat? Right. I'm not a Barbie doll, Jake."

He snickered and then said, "Good. Don't ever stop eating." Even behind the anorexia warning, I could sense a double meaning. The hole started to tingle against the edges, and I gasped quietly.

"You ready to head home?"

"Yeah… I think I'm a little tired. And I have a paper due on Tuesday that I need to finish."

And with that, Jake turned on the car and then pulled out onto the highway and headed over to my house to drop me off.

Once again, we drove in silence.

When we reached my house, I asked, "You want to come in, or something?"

He smiled and shook his head. "I got to go clean the house before my dad gets back."

"Oh, okay. Listen, Jake, I had tons of fun this morning. We should do it again sometimes."

"Yeah! It was an awesome day."

"So, I have to go."

"Yeah…"

"Oh, Jake?"

"Yeah?"

I studied his face for a second before I answered.

"Thank-you."

"Any time, Bella."

And with that, he pulled out of my driveway and down the road.

I went inside, fully expecting to do the dishes, but then I got so exhausted so quickly. I retreated up to my room, and then changed out of my bathing suit into my pajamas. Even though it was about twelve thirty, I wanted to be comfortable. My pajamas were _defiantly_ the most comfortable thing I owned. I made my way over to my bed, and pulled back the quilt.

I was asleep before I hit the pillow.


	3. Romeo

**Disclaimer: I don't own.**

**Waiting in the Wings – Romeo (Chapter II)**

"Bella!" Charlie called from downstairs. "You awake yet?"

I pulled my eyes from the blank computer screen.

"I'm doing homework, Dad. You need anything?"

"I made breakfast. Come eat before you starve."

Warily, I got up from my computer desk and made my way down to the kitchen table. If Charlie was making breakfast, I wanted to be on my guard.

Charlie put a plate in front of me and as I looked down at it, said, "Toaster waffles? Impressive."

Charlie grunted. "Just eat, Bella." I popped a piece of Waffle into my mouth without really tasting it.

He sat down opposite from me and said, "So what are you planning on doing today?"

I shrugged and said, "I dunno. Probably just hang out over at Jake's and do homework. I'm getting a little bit behind."

"Don't get too far behind – I'd hate to ground you for bad grades," Charlie said. He sounded absolutely delighted that I was doing things other than homework.

"Don't worry, I just have to finish my English paper," _that I hadn't even started._

"You have fun today, Bells."

"I will, Charlie," I said as I stood up to collect Charlie's plate to do the dishes.

_at the garage _

"So, what do you think?"

Jacob's voice sounded distant as it pulled me from my homework. "Hm?"

"Do you wanna go find your meadow today, or are you too far behind in homework?" he asked.

I shook my head and said, "Jake, don't you know a lost cause when it slaps you in the face?"

He laughed and said, "Silly Bella. You should know by now that I don't believe in using those two words in the same sentence. Besides, we'll find it."

"Well, I suppose I'm open to anything you wanna do. But we can't let Billy know."

"Why not?"

I shrugged and said, "Charlie's worried about some giant wolves in the forest."

Jake snorted into his soda. "Right. Giant wolves…" he said as he stood up and made his way to my truck.

"Hey, don't give me that look. _I_ know it's safe, but he doesn't."

I collected my school bag and then walked over to the truck and threw it in the back. When I got into the front seat, I turned it on and then slowly, I turned the Stereo on. When the music started pouring out of the speakers, I quickly turned it off. Earlier this morning, I had thought I would have been strong enough to listen to Linkin Park.

I was wrong.

"Not today, then…" I said as I chuckled nervously.

"You sure you want to go find it?"

"Yeah, I think I am," I said as I backed out onto the street. Who knew how wrong I could be?

Jacob and I talked in the cab. It appeared he was having a problem with a girl.

"…she just can't take a _hint!_ Bella, what do I _do?_"

I chuckled. "Jake, be her friend. She might be a little… obsessive, on the outside, but if you get to know her, she could be the best thing that ever happened to you."

"Yeah, sure." I could tell from his tone of voice that he thought I had hit my head on something large and heavy.

"Seriously, though. Give her a chance," I said as we got to the end of the pavement. I cut the engine and then got out of the cab. Without a word, I led Jacob into the forest.

After about two hours, I tripped over an upturned tree root. Again.

"You know, I'm starting to think that I made it all up," I said as I picked myself of the floor.

"Nah, we'll find it. Out of curiosity, though, why is this place so important to you?"

I cringed as the hole started to rip itself open again.

"Long story?"

I nodded. Jacob sat down on a tree stump and patted a rock next to him. "Care to explain?"

I was about to shake my head, but then I saw something in Jacob's eyes that made me think that he wasn't going to give up.

"This meadow. It's the first place that I found out what he… was. The first place that I saw actual proof that he was so much more than human," I clutched my stomach for support.

"You mean your bloodsucker?"

I didn't answer, but I could feel a tear trickling down the side of my face. I looked sideways at Jacob, and he had the most peculiar expression plastered on his face.

"Bella, I'm disgusted."

"At me? For what?"

"All this time I had thought you were making an effort to let go. Now I see what an idiot I've been."

"Jacob, what - ?"

He stood up and pointed at me accusingly.

"You're holding onto him! You aren't trying to let go! Don't you see what that's doing to you?"

"Jake, please. Not now."

"Now is just as good as a time as any. The guy is a jerk! The filthy bloodsucker left you to practically _die._"

I stood on my feet, erupting in anger.

"Jake! Don't you _dare_ insult him! Before him, I was _nothing! _Do you hear me? He has made me into who I am!" I didn't know why I was defending him.

"I'll say! He made you into someone who spends all of her energy on something that was never supposed to happen in the first place! Don't you get it, Bella? _He doesn't love you anymore._ I wouldn't be surprised to find out that all of it was a lie."

His words cut me deep. But I knew that they were true.

"Jake, just shut up, alright?"

And with that, I turned on my heel deeper into the forest. My feet were carrying me, and I don't know how I didn't trip all over the place with my vision interrupted by my tears.

_He_ was in my head, all the time. _Go left._ _Avoid that plant – it's poisonous_._ Separate the vines._

Why was my brain that was _him _giving me directions? Nonetheless, I followed them, grateful for the sound of another person's voice.

I was sure that Jacob was following me, because I don't think that he would leave me to get lost. But maybe he would, I don't know.

After about half an hour of following the directions, I came to a clearing. The same clearing that I had been looking for for the past who knows how long.

It was our Meadow.

I slowly walked through to the grass, and sat down, shaking.

Coming here was defiantly not a good idea.

"Bella? Are you alright?"

I shook my head. Jacob was not supposed to be here; this was _our_ place.

"Listen, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said those things."

I looked up to him. "They were still true."

"I'm sorry. Honest."

I just shook my head and started rocking on the mossy floor. I started crying there. Little did I know, the last tears I would ever cry would be over my Fickle Romeo.

Jacob seemed at a loss as to what to do.

"It would have been helpful if you had _told_ me you knew how to get here, Bella," he said, trying to lighten the mood.

"I didn't. I just started going."

Suddenly, a shudder ran down Jacob's spine.

"Jake? Is there something – "

"Run, Bella! Go!"

"What?"

_Go, Bella. You have to run. Go, now!_

When his voice came into my mind, I automatically stood up and looked around. I couldn't see Jacob any more.

From behind me, someone started to laugh a high, musical laugh. But yet, still manic, in a way.

I turned around, and would have screamed if _his_ voice wasn't whispering soothing things into my mind.

"Well, well. What have we here?"


	4. Going Insane

**Disclaimer: I don't own**

**Waiting in the Wings – Going Insane (Chapter III)**

It had been three years since that fateful day; three years since I had lost everything I had held dear.

Everyone in Forks thought I was dead. I had tarried there only long enough to find out that the story around Forks was that I had been eaten by the giant wolves, which was the Pack's cover story for the lack of a body to bury. I knew that Charlie was physically sick from my 'death.' So sick, in fact, that Renee and Phil had even come to help him. The thing that killed me was that I could not say goodbye, or even get close enough to them to look at them, because if I had, I would have killed them right there.

I knew that I needed to get the heck out of there, so I moved to Alaska. Over the past three years, I had actually bumped into Tanya and even gotten together with her a couple of times. Now, we were pretty close friends. Although, I had told her my name was Marie, for fear that a certain ex-significant other had caught up with her. Even now, I don't think that I would be ready to catch up with _him._

I really didn't _need_ to be here in Alaska, as the burning in my throat was totally under control, but I figured I had no where else to go. I couldn't move back to Forks, because everyone would be pretty surprised if a dead girl showed up and enrolled in High School.

At first, living without anybody around me had been… exceedingly difficult. I had nobody to talk to, nobody to listen to me. It was all very frustrating. But then it got better as I learned to live with what I had. I thought I was managing fairly well.

Then again, if anyone came and observed me for a while, they might think I needed to be submitted to a hospital. I was always talking to myself, and it was like there were five – or even fifteen – Bella's living under my quaint little roof instead of just me.

I learned to speak to my appliances – my remote control, my CD player, even the kitchen props. Every one of them had a different personality. It was really rather hilarious, once I had thought about it. I knew I was going insane, so I decided that I would go to High School again. I needed to regain said sanity.

If I _was_ going to High School, I certainty couldn't do so here, as it was sunny a lot of the time. So I walked over to my office and turned on my computer. Once it fully turned on, I opened up my favorite search engine and looked for a town that was overcast most of the time. After about half an hour, I finally came up with Brentwood, Pennsylvania, which had an average 203 cloudy (which I assumed meant overcast) days per year.

I was moving to Brentwood. Over the course of the next year, with the help of Tanya's help, I had bought a handsome little white one-story house, packed my little house in the middle of the forest up, and sold it. (Although I don't know who would want to live six hours from any speck of civilization.) I had two weeks to get out of there. So instead of lingering there longer than necessary, I left to the airport that day with Tanya.

When we got there, the first thing that I noticed was the _scent._ It was so very different from the animals I had eaten previously, and I hadn't expect it to hit me so hard. I flinched as a young girl of about six years old passed me, and I would have jumped on top of her had two things not happened.

First of all, Tanya's arm was restraining me around my wrist, and she hissed under her breath, too quiet for anyone else to hear.

And secondly, simply one word. One low, snarled word.

"Bella!"

I froze. Usually, I wouldn't have had a second thought about someone calling my name, as nobody had called _me_ in over four years. _This_ voice was the same voice I hadn't heard since I had been hanging around Jacob Black. Velvet soft and so _beautifully_ angry. This was _his_ voice.

"Breathe in and out, slowly," he demanded in my ear, "The air helps you clear your mind." I was too shocked to comply.

I blinked.

"Marie! Stop it!"

I cringed. This was not the voice I craved, but nevertheless, it brought me back to my senses.

"Breathe," he begged. Very quickly, I checked to see if anybody was paying attention to me as I took a breath. The result was almost instantaneous; I no longer had the scent of the poor little girl in my head. The fresh air had acted as a filter to my body. But the memory lingered.

"Marie, what were you thinking?"

It took me a second to realize that she was talking to me. I cringed as I looked into her golden eyes. "I'm sorry. It just… Surprised me, that's all. I'll be fine." I was sure I sounded as if I was trying to convince not only her, but myself.

We were silent as we went into the Airport.

"Flight 408 to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, boarding now."

That seemed to pull us back to the present, and Tanya let out a little whimper. "Oh, Marie! I can't believe you're really going!" Tanya had said for the millionth time as we stood in front of the boarding gate.

"Yeah, me either."

"Listen… you _have_ to call me once a week," she demanded. "If you get into any trouble, I'll be a phone call away, alright?" I knew she was talking about what had happened earlier with the little girl.

"Of course," I said as I gave her a hug, which she returned. "Love you, Marie." I cringed. After four years, she still knew me as Marie. That thought made me sad. If I could cry, I would have.

"Last call for flight 408 to Harrisburg, last call to Harrisburg."

I pulled back and chuckled nervously. "That's me."

"Well, I guess this is goodbye, Marie."

I shook my head. It bugged me a little when I realized that I was trying to both clear my head and answer… both of them?

"Never goodbye. Just sort of a… 'see-you-later.'" I smiled.

She laughed. "Okay.. See you later, then."

"Bella, you're going to miss your plane!" Edward's voice was in my ear, panicked.

I shook my head again to clear it.

"Bella! You need to go!"

With that, I hugged Tanya one last time. "See you, Tanya. Love you!" I called as I disappeared to the plane. She might have replied, but I didn't want to hear. Too painful.

- - -

When I was on the plane, Edward's velvet soft voice came into my ear again.

"Bella…" his velvet soft voice was coated with disappointment. "Don't you do that again! You need to pay more attention."

"Shut up," I mumbled. I was trying to take my mind off of things by listening to my MP3 player. Whoever was sitting in the seat next to me scooted over a little bit. Why was I having these hallucinations _now?_ I wasn't doing anything stupid, or reckless. Maybe a little bit risky, but not stupid, and definitely not reckless.

I _was_ going insane.


	5. The Thing

**Disclaimer: I don't own.**

**Waiting in the Wings – The Thing (Chapter IV)**

I was surprised when the plane landed. I hadn't had too much trouble resisting anyone. Of course, they all avoided me if they could help it. But then, who came up to a vampire willingly? Even the flight attendant kept walking past my isle until she got a reproachful look from someone who I guessed was her boss.

"_Please put on your seat belts, we are starting to land," _the speaker said. I ignored it and kept listening to my MP3, and only when _his_ voice came into my head did I realize that I didn't put my seat belt on and did not even slide a fraction of an inch off my seat. "Bella!" _he_ had said. "People are staring."

As quick as a flash, I pulled it on and buckled it so it looked as if I had not even moved. I saw many people rub their eyes and look questioningly at me. In response, I just smiled, and they immediately were preoccupied with twiddling their thumbs or something of the sort.

The rest of the morning went well– I had picked up my house keys and located all of my luggage, with none of it missing – a plus I hadn't expected. Luggage tended to run away from me. And I had gotten to my rental car quickly – and at human speed, too. It was a light blue 2008 Cadillac CTS, and I immediately fell in love with it. It was comfortable, and quiet, and fast. I would have to buy one of these when I got the cash.

I had gotten the directions from out of my back pocked and led the moving van to my new home.

When I pulled into the long driveway, I was completely taken aback. It was even more beautiful in person, when I was standing in front of it. It was totally perfect for me. No neighbors for at least four miles in every direction, and extremely shady for those days when the sun decided to show its face.

"Ma'am?"

The voice of the moving man pulled me from my train of thought.

"Yes?" I smiled.

"Er… Where would you like me to put your things?"

I gestured toward the door. "Just set them in the front hall."

"Wouldn't you like us to help unpack?"

I smiled again. "No, thank-you, that won't be necessary." I'm sure the complete lack of bedroom furniture would have disgruntled him somewhat.

"If you're sure, then."

"Yes," I said as I walked over and unlocked my house for the first time.

The hinges made a squeaking noise – I would have to fix that later. When I walked into the front hall, the first thing I noticed was that the interior of the house, unlike the exterior, was in not so good of a shape. The ceiling lamp in the living room beyond was falling down, and the light flickered on for about five seconds before going out again.

I should have come to look at it first. But the pictures and description of the house were just too perfect – and it was something I could easily afford. So, like my mother before me, I had jumped the gun. But even with all these imperfections, I still thought it was the most gorgeous thing to ever be built.

I looked around in the dark a little bit. On the back French doors, there was a note addressed to me.

_Dear new tenant _

_Well, I hope you enjoy your new home. I apologize for the currant state of the thing. _I chuckled. This person had called it "the thing."_ I hope the light is working alright. It looked like it was going to fall when I had left. I had asked my room-mate to put it up before he left, but I don't know how reliable he can be. Please forward any mail you might receive for me, and call if you have any questions about the thing. _Again with 'the thing.' It could rub off on me as a nickname.

"Excuse me, ma'am. We have all your things inside," said a moving man. I stuffed the note back into my pocket. From behind me, I could smell the faint stench of Alcohol. Edward growled inside my ear.

I stuffed the note into my back pocket and then said, "Alright, then." I was quite eager to have him out of my house. When I turned around, my eyes flew up to his ID badge, which held his name and ID number. I quickly memorized the two, as I would be reporting this.

It took me a minuet to realize he wanted the rest of his paycheck. I had come up short the last time I had sent the money.

"Oh! Yes, of course you're finished. So… what do I owe you?" I took my wallet out.

He answered promptly. "Just twenty-seven dollars."

I took the cash out of my wallet, and then handed it to him. He seemed to hesitate after putting it into his wallet, so I smiled and said, "Is there something wrong?"

"No, ma'am, everything is fine. But I was just thinking… I could give this here money back to you in exchange for…"

I raised my eyebrows. I had a guess at what he was getting at. "For?"

"For a little… Kiss?" Edward started to growl louder.

Holy Crow. What a bastard. The guy looked like he was forty years old, and I was – or appeared to be, anyway – Eighteen. I seriously needed to teach him a lesson.

I plastered a fake smile onto my face and said, "Of course." His eyes opened wide, as if amazed at his luck. _You're about to get more than you bargained for._

I beckoned him closer to me, and he leaned in.

"Bella! What are you doing!"

His voice was pained, as if he cared if I was kissing this… _thing._ I smiled lightly, even though I was starting to feel… something that I hadn't felt in over five years.

The echo of the forgotten hole. I cringed internally.

I answered in my head. _Just wait._

I quickly put my arms around his neck – I would be forcing the will not to throw up, had I been able to – and whispered, "This is for drinking in a Lady's presence," and lifted my knee up.

Immediately, he fell onto the carpet, all the while gasping. I could hear the distant sound of… applause?

"And _this,"_ I said as I pulled his wallet from his hands – I needed that twenty-seven dollars back – and kicked his leg, "…is for trying to make a move on me when I'm eighteen. And since I'm assuming you aren't too bright, I'll do the math for you. That's about twenty two years older than I am. Now get up."

He didn't move, and so I said, "Now there, Trevor the moving man, you had better get up before I make you."

He very quietly snorted. "Oh, so you don't believe that I can lift you?"

He was silent. Probably wishing he hadn't said anything. I smirked and very swiftly grabbed his foot and dragged him across the carpet to the front hall.

"Get out of my house," I said with much venom in my voice – literally. My mouth was practically swimming in it. But I was too preoccupied by rage to notice quite so much.

My eyes had turned to slits, and that probably scared him a little bit. So he got up and ran out of the house, followed by our little audience.

As soon as they had gotten out of sight, I pulled out the business card and my phone from my back pocket. I dialed the number on the card and when the operator answered, I said, "Yes, hi. I would like to file a complaint."

After holding for about five minuets, I got connected with a Mr. Greene. "Mr. Greene. I assume you aren't acutely aware of the fact that your employees are drinking on the job?"

"I- wait. What?"

"You heard me. A Mr. Trevor Dorado was drunk as he moved my things into my home."

"Trevor? No. Not possible."

"I can assure you, it is. _And_ you know what else? He tried to kiss me in exchange for his money."

"Oh, my goodness."

"Yeah. I assume I'm going to receive some sort of compensation for this?"

"Well, first I need to send someone by."

"Of course you do." I rolled my eyes. "Do you have a pen, Mr. Greene?"

I proceeded to give him my number and address. He said that he would send along one of his 'most trusted employees' to investigate. "In fact, I think he's out there right now, on a business trip. Is it alright if I send him by today or tomorrow?"

"The sooner the better. Thank you so much, Mr. Greene," I sighed as I put my phone back into my pocket.

Now I had to unpack all these wretched boxes. Not a pleasant thing to do, but inevitable.

I decided to start with the living room. In about twenty minuets, I had all the furniture out and arranged. I would have to replace the TV set, and put a slip cover on the sofa.

I put the rest of my house away in the next hour, and then turned on the radio. A song I hadn't heard in a while came out of the speaker.Sarah McLachlan's _I will Remember you._ I sat down on the couch, idle for a moment, listening.

_I will remember you  
Will you remember me?  
Don't let your life pass you by  
Weep not for the memories _

_Remember the good times that we had?  
I let them slip away from us when things got bad  
How clearly I first saw you smilin' in the sun  
Wanna feel your warmth upon me, I wanna be the one_

_I will remember you  
Will you remember me?  
Don't let your life pass you by  
Weep not for the memories_

_I'm so tired but I can't sleep  
Standin' on the edge of something much too deep  
It's funny how we feel so much but we cannot say a word  
We are screaming inside, but we can't be heard_

_But I will remember you  
Will you remember me?  
Don't let your life pass you by  
Weep not for the memories…_

I would have kept listening to the rest of the song, but it got to be too much.

For one thing, Edward's voice was in my ear, faintly whispering the lyrics. Not singing, whispering. In his voice, I had to shut it off, because I knew that he didn't mean them. That hurt me, a lot. For the first time in five years, I felt like crying.

And second, I could hear somebody's footsteps outside my door. I got up from my sofa and walked into the front hall. And then, I almost hit a hole through my wall. There was someone out there that made me want to throw up.

Someone? No, _something._ I recoiled, and then held my breath. Without the scent, it was easier to focus. And then I wanted to slap myself. This… _person, _well, he or she, _it,_ was probably here to inspect my house. I had to be more polite. But I had a hunch that this was more than just bad-smelling blood. Edward started snarling in my ear, and then he whispered one word:

"_Werewolf."_


	6. Serious Problems

**Disclaimer: I don't own.**

**Waiting in the Wings – Serious Problems (Chapter V)**

I swallowed. "Werewolf?" I said with difficulty. Edward confirmed by snarling into my ear.

Oh, land. There was a werewolf come to inspect my home. I held my breath as I looked through the eye piece on the door. The man standing outside on the porch was tense in his uniform, and I could see tremors going down his body, although they were slowing. That was good; I couldn't have an angry werewolf destroy my home.

I took a deep breath and opened the door. "Hello," I said, as politely as physically possible. I was being pelted with his scent. Even with my breath held, it was almost too much. He smelled… well, there isn't anything to describe the way he smelled. No words to put my thoughts into words. As much as I wanted to slam the door and order someone else to come, I stood aside, possibly killing myself. "Come in," and gestured toward the threshold. It was awkward, standing there. This wolf was staring at me, and his eyes were full of hatred, and something else was buried deep within them. I couldn't tell what, at the moment. I only hoped I didn't look quite as mad.

"Well… Let's get this over with," he said in a deep, husky voice. I remembered that voice… "So where is it worst at?" he asked as he looked into my eyes. This was good; I needed him to know that I didn't take pleasure in murdering people. He relaxed a little bit when they met, but he was still on his guard, a tremor going up his spine once in a while.

I looked around the front hall, where a can of beer was lying half full on the floor. A few more empty ones were spewed across the hallway. He chuckled nervously. "Right… here."

"Well, I have to take care of something really fast. Can I get you anything?"

"No, ma'am. Thank-you," he said as he pulled out his pen from his clip board. I turned to the sofa, and sat down to think. My phone then started buzzing, and I quickly pulled it out and looked at the Caller ID. As it wasn't a number I recognized, I flipped it open and said, "Hello, this is Isabella Swan." From the hall, I heard something break. Possibly a spare China plate... That was good - I could get some money for that.

"Miss Swan! How good it is that I could catch you. This is Cheryl Launem at PS 478."

"Hello, Ms. Launem! What can I do for you?"

"Well, first I wanted to apologize for calling on a Saturday-"

"I'm sorry, would you excuse me for a moment?" I interrupted her. The wolf was standing a few feet away from me, his eyes wide.

"Bella?"

I put the phone to my chest and said, "Sorry… Do I know you?"

"It's… it's me. Jake."

Oh, my goodness. I slowly put the phone to my ear and said, "Ms. Launem, I really need to call you back, okay?" and hung up. I looked at the wolf in front of me and opened my mouth. This was why he was so… familiar to me.

"Jacob? Jacob Black?"

"Jacob Black. Bella, you're a vampire," he marveled, as if I didn't know.

"I had no idea," I said, trying to lighten the mood, if even on a miniscule scale.

"So… How…?" he asked me as he sat on the chair across the room.

"You don't remember?" I asked. He shook his head, and I continued. "That day, when we went to find the meadow…" I trailed off. I couldn't hear Jacob tapping his foot any more, so I looked up. Jacob was shaking. I was tempted to go over and try to calm him down, but I knew it would make it worse. We were technically mortal enemies now. "Jacob?"

"She… She didn't kill you? The bloodsucker left you _worse_ than dead?" He shouted.

For once, I didn't want to argue with him. I was here, forever alone and slave to the thirst. I didn't know what to say, and Jacob was still shaking. "We… Sam… He though – Oh, my gosh. We thought you had died out there."

"Why didn't you check?"

"Sam told us not to. Bella, I just can't believe you're still… Alive," He had stopped shaking. "Bella, don't you see? You're here! You're you, you're up, and you…" he turned away, embarrassed. "What?" I said. "Jake, tell me."

"Bella, you're… You're beautiful, you know that?"

"I'm just an average eighteen year old, Jacob. Just one average looking, immortal eighteen year old. And besides, I'm not me any more. I left Bella Swan behind, a long time ago."

He was quiet. It was nice at first, but I soon felt a need to break the silence. "So what have you been doing, lately?"

He shrugged and said, "Oh, nothing. I live out here now, to take care of my great-aunt, Britta."

"Great-aunt? Small world, I suppose."

He nodded and said, "Ha-ha, yeah it sure is."

"So are you finished with high school?"

"Well, sort of… I had to drop out my junior year to move out here. Now I'm working as an out-of-state secretary for one of Sam's friends, who is actually my cousin." He snorted. "Basically he's just paying me to sit on the couch all day and make sure Britta doesn't fall over. What about you?"

"Nothing of consequence… Just poking around the world. But for the most part, I was living in Alaska."

I felt the couch vibrating softly under me. My phone was off, so it must have been Jacob's. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and looked at the ID. When he groaned, I said, "You need to go?" He looked at me for a minute before he said anything. "Yeah… But we should catch up sometime soon."

"Of course! When are you free?"

"Whenever you are, I guess."

"Well, I start school on Wednesday…"

"Let's make it Tuesday, then, if that's okay?"

"Tuesday sounds fabulous."

"Well, I _really_ have to go now… But I'll call you, alright?"

When I nodded, he said he would show himself out. The door slammed, and I sat down on the couch with a _huff!_ While I sat, I pondered what had just happened. Next week, I had my mortal enemy and former best friend coming over to _catch up._

I had some serious problems.


	7. Inevitable

**Ah. Sorry if the chapter is bad; it's just a tad bit late here. Or… Early now, I guess. Sorry. **

**A lot of you are probably going to go – what the snap this is totally un-realistic. My response? That's what happens when you're up at 12.30 in the morning, high on Jelly Beans. C: **

**I don't own.**

**Ch. 6**

The rest of the week passed by slowly. Edward scolded me for having Jacob come over, and every single time I replied, _Not that you care._

On Monday, I was running around my kitchen, frantic. I hadn't eaten food in a while – and what did he like to eat? I pulled out an old cook-book and opened it to a random page. I smiled as I ran my finger down it, remembering making these for Charlie. Finally, I settled on Grandma Swan's Stroganoff.

When I opened my cupboard, feeling like I was at home with Charlie, I quickly realized that I had no food. Well, having food might help just a little bit when preparing it. So I got the rental car key and drove down to the store. We had passed it on the way to my home, so I knew where it was.

While I was at the store, I immediately felt all of the scents of the people around me, pelting me with a temptation that tickled at the back of my throat. I think I might have put a dent in the handlebar of the shopping cart. I was still new at this whole resisting thing, but I thought I was managing fairly well.

Now… What was I doing here, again?

Ah, yes. Food. It didn't smell… particularly appetizing, but not repulsive, either. And all this food made me fully understand what I had given up.

Not on purpose, of course. Clearly, I hadn't asked Victoria to fail at her attempt to annihilate me. That credit belongs to the Pack of La Push. Not that I could blame them… I would either be here, wanting food, or… not here.

I continued to contemplate this for a while. Possibly several seconds, or minutes. All I noticed was Jacob's hand waving in front of my face.

"Bella? Bella..? Anybody home?"

"What?"

When I realized that I was being an idiot, Jacob looked… kind of worried. About me? That was odd. Nobody – that is to say, no _guy_ – had been worried about me since… Well, it had been a while.

"Are we asleep today?"

I wish.

"No… Just shopping for food I don't intend to eat."

Jacob was taken aback. "Don't tell me you're going to feed me!"

"Well, what do you expect? For you to fend for yourself?"

"Well… Kind of..?"

I had to laugh at his expression. It was really quite funny, but hard to describe. The way his eyebrows were positioned, I wanted to say,_ Just spit it out, Jacob!_

"So what are _you _doing here?" I asked him as we walked down various isles.

"Fending for myself," he said, gesturing toward his cart full with Pop Tarts, TV dinners, Sodas, Chips, and so much more junk food.

"Is this what you… er… live on?"

He shrugged. "Pretty much, yeah."

"No, that won't do!" I picked up a box of Toaster Strudels, and underneath it there was a box of doughnuts.

Holy snap… I was honestly surprised that he wasn't fat.

"You." I pointed my finger at him. "Go put all this junk back."

"Bella! I can't!"

I arched my eyebrow.

"This is what I live off of! I can't afford anything else!"

"You leave that to me."

"But –"

I shoved the cart toward him. "Just go put it back, Jacob."

When he saw that I was serious, he backed away with the cart, slowly. I stuck my tongue out at him, and he laughed.

Now… I needed to feed him. My eyes roamed the store, and they fell on a package of Snow Crab legs. Kind of expensive. In fact, I only remember eating them once in my lifetime. And that was at my mother's marriage to Phil.

I caught up with Jacob once again, who was now cart-free. He came over and started poking around in the cart, and when he picked up a package of Salad and arched his eyebrow, I said, "It's good for you." Although, there was a lot of Salad, come pre-washed in the bags. And also a lot of salad dressing.

I had fruit, vegetables, bread, cheese, meat, and things to drink. When I went to the check-out line, it came out to $138.90. Jacob put forward the first one hundred dollars, as I soon found out that I was a little bit short.

I had wanted to pay for it, because Jacob looked like he could use it right now. But then again, so could I.

We got to my car and loaded everything into the back seat. I told him to lead the way to his home, and then he got kind of emotional.

"Jacob? What's the matter?" I asked him.

"Nothing."

"Jake! Seriously. What is it?"

"I swear, it isn't anything."

"If you don't tell me, I promise I'll force it out of you."

"Listen… Bella, can we go over to your place? I kind of need to talk to you."

"Yeah, of course, Jake. Sure."

I got into my car, and he made his way over to his. In about an hour, we were both at my home, unloading groceries. We talked and joked for a while, and then made our way into the living room.

"So… You needed to talk to me?"

"Yeah. Do you remember the aunt that I was telling you about? Britta?"

I nodded.

"Well she… She passed away two nights ago."

"Oh, Jake! I'm so sorry!"

"It's alright. I didn't really know her that well – and she went in her sleep, too. Peaceful."

"That's good…" I felt bad for him, and I also had no idea where he was going with this.

"Okay, so I'm just going to cut to the chase. Bella, I was kicked out. My cousin needed to rent out the house, and I had to leave this morning."

Blank incomprehension was written across my face.

"Yeah…"

"Bella, I wouldn't ask you if this wasn't important, okay?"

"Okay.."

"Bells, I need a place to stay."

Wait. What?

"You want to move in with me?"

"If that's alright."

"Well… yeah, I mean… I guess that's fine…"

"Only if you're sure."

"I have nobody else to talk to, so I welcome it. But can I ask you something?"

He nodded. "Anything."

"I mean, I don't want to be rude, but… Why not go back to La Push? Why stay here, away from family?"

He sighed. "Sam's giving me crap about… Well, just some stuff. And I don't want to go home right away. I don't know if I'm allowed to, actually." He seemed kind of irritated about that.

"What? What do you mean, not allowed to?"

"I mean exactly that. If I show up, they could kick me out again."

"But _why?" _I breathed.

"Just… I don't know. It's complicated, and I'm kind of tired." He yawned.

"Yeah, Okay…" I didn't want to push it. "Do you want to take a nap, or something?"

"If that's alright."

"Well… My couch isn't very comfortable. You can go in on my bed, if you want. I never use it, and it's the best thing I've got."

Jake and I both got up and I led the way into my bedroom. It was clean, still, with the Fan on and the vanity covered in different pictures of family and quotes.

"Not much, but…"

"Thank-you, Bella. For this, I mean."

I smiled at him. "Of course, Jake. You sleep, and I'll make you a salad for when you wake up," I said, and he groaned. "Kidding! You'll have _some_ sort of dinner, though."

I smiled again and shut the door to go work on something to eat, for lack of something else to do. I was just having a blast with a bunch of different ingredients, and came up with something that I hoped tasted okay. I followed no recipe, and did it on a whim.

If he didn't like it, that was the consequences of having someone who can't taste any food actually make something. Maybe I should have gotten him to sign a form saying he couldn't sue me if my cooking made him choke and die.

Now that I was not fully preoccupied, I noticed the tickle in my throat was a little bit more than a tickle now. So I left a note on the table that said I had to go run more errands. I put directions as to where the dinner and paper and plastic utensils were at, and what to do with the dinner if it tasted like a burnt shoe.

I needed to get out, thinking about what had happened today, and then come back and start freaking out because there is a werewolf asleep in my bed.

I couldn't be here with him and have the urge to snap his neck. Of course, he didn't smell that great to begin with, but temptation is always there. And so of course, there was hunting.

Of course, _that_ was inevitable.

**Oh. My. Gosh. Raise your hand if you know who Josh Shipp is. He came to my high school today and talked to our student body. Let me tell you he is one of the most amazing motivational speakers in the history of motivational speakers. Seriously go look him up on YouTube. He's so funny but at the same time he sends such an amazing message. One of the first times my school laughed **_**with**_** the speaker, and not **_**at **_**him.**


	8. Lemonade

Mary's back Mary's back! Sorry about not updating. Ohkay… So I had Mononucleosis and Cytomegalovirus forever and I, obviously, wasn't feeling that great, which was why I didn't update. Plus I went to Disneyland like two days after I got over it. Forgive me if I can surpass the urge to write while I have a fever. So I have to thank Angeliss for giving me this idea. I had a different way, but this just seemed so much better. Thanks. If you have a problem with me using it, let me know. Sorry about the shortish chapter. I needed to get_ something_ out, and I wanted to let you know that I wasn't like… dead or something. Ch. 7

Soon after I had shut the front door, I started running. Running took my mind off of things, and I was currently in need of an empty mind.

I had a werewolf staying in my home, and one who needed to be fed. How am I supposed to be doing that? But then I started to argue with myself.

_No… He can fend for himself._

Yes, that very well may be, but I need to help him!

_Do not._

Yeah, I do! You don't know what it's like, seeing him there!

_This is just an excuse._

Pardon me?

_You just want to use his 'current state' or whatever you want to call it to help him._

And that's a bad thing?

_Not necessarily. But you're going to get too close to him, Bella!_

I shook my head.

_Listen to reason! That's your mortal enemy in there, and you're cooking for him! You could get hurt, Bella!_

_This_ voice made me stop in my tracks. I shouldn't have been surprised by the voice, but it always succeeded in doing so. Edward.

"No! I won't let you take control of my life. You wanted me to live my life. This is how I choose to do so."

"_But Bella! It's stupid and reckless and moronic!"_

I smirked. "Moronic as it may be… You have no choice in the matter."

"_Bella. You have to understand. You care for this… Thing, and to what extent I don't know. But if you care for him, then you have to let him go! Force him to leave, you could kill him! He could kill you!"_

I slowed to a walk. My mind was correct, once again. I found that I did care for Jacob, and therefore I _should_ get rid of him fairly quickly. But I couldn't just leave him to fend for himself… And I also found that I was glad to have him there. Glad for someone else to be able to talk to, glad for another person.

This was all very confusing, and so I took off running faster and faster, until I had come upon a deer that was clearly in pain, grateful for the distraction. Her left hind leg was missing, and she was barely breathing. More out of mercy as apposed to taste did I drain her. Deer were alright… Better than some animals, worse than others. Like if you had imitation lemonade made with a powder and room temperature water sitting next to one that was made with fresh squeezed lemons with plenty of sugar, ice cold, and you were forced to drink the imitation drink? It's still good, but you're thinking all the while… _Man… I wish I could have some of the other stuff._ Grizzly bear sounded good right at the moment.

Anyway… I finished her off, and then moved on to find something else to quench my thirst. The day went on like that, and then after I was satisfied, my mind started to wander toward Jacob, once again.

It was really crazy, but I decided that I would make it an open invitation. Well, technically it already was, but I just wanted him to know it. I raced home, excited. I was going to have somebody to cook for, somebody to be around. Not just one person in _my_ house! Oh no!

I burst through the threshold, and then ran to the living room, where the TV was on. Jacob was sitting on the sofa, with the thirteen by eleven glass baking pan sat in his lap, halfway empty from the food that I had made. He had the fork halfway up to his mouth, but then his attention was directed toward me.

I smiled and waved smallishly. He smiled, and then his fork hit his cheek. I couldn't help but laugh. "Am I that distracting?"

"Hey, Bella!"

"Listen, Jake! I have to talk to you!"

"Yeah? Me too, actually."

"Oh, well, okay. You go first."

He didn't need much more of an introduction than that.

"Well, okay. I was thinking, while I was eating this... It's really good, by the way... You shouldn't have to be doing all of this."

"All of this? What do you mean?"

"This Human thing."

"Not following you, sorry…"

He sighed, and put the pan on the coffee table.

"This dish was one of the best things I've ever tasted. And that's the thing… You can't taste it. Which makes me think that you shouldn't have to... be doing it."

Oh, now I understood. "Jake, this isn't anything that's hard for me to do! I had fun!"

He smiled weakly.

"Yeah? I'm glad you did. But next time, it won't be as fun. You'll start thinking of me as a chore, and I can't be that weight on your shoulders. I think I should get my own place."

"Jake, no! You can't! Besides, where would you go to? You said Sam was giving you a hard time, and I don't want you to have to deal with him!"

"Bella, I can fend for myself. If it means going out and finding a homeless shelter, that's fine by me."

What? No! He couldn't do that! "Jake! No, please! You have to stay!"

"Now you're just taking pity on me."

"No, Jake! I'm not! I swear! I was out hunting and then I thought, 'I am so glad Jacob is at my home.'"

He seemed to brighten up at that, ever so slightly. "Really?"

"Honest. You have to stay!"

"Bella! Seriously, though. I don't think I should."

"Why not? If it makes you feel any better, I'll let you cook your own food! And you can pay me rent, if you'd like."

"Bella-"

"Oh, alright! Leave, then! I was all excited about having somebody to talk to, and here you are, saying you're going to go!" I could hear the touch of hysteria in my voice. "Not the first time this has happened to me before, you know! I should be used to it!"

I immediately felt bad, playing that card. But I really wanted Jake to stay with me, and if doing it was the only way…

"Oh, fine! I'll stay."

I ran to him and gave him a tight hug.

"Thank-you thank-you thank-you thank-you!"

"You're welcome! But shouldn't it be the other way around? Me thanking _you,_ that is?"

"Oh, we'll have time for that later," I said as I made my way toward the kitchen.

"I'm sure we will. Hey, Bells?"

"Yeah?"

"You got any Lemonade?"


	9. Holy Crow

Okay

**Mary's back! (Hopefully permanently. Ish.) But I might not have time to update because I just found out that one of my friend's older sisters did something to her that is not acceptable; AT ALL. And so I have to be there for her if she needs to cry. Friends before Fiction. **

**And just to let you guys know… I **_**do**_** ship Canon. **

**I don't own.**

Jacob was living with me now. Really, truly living with me, Bella Swan.

The thought made me smile, but for more reasons than one.

For one thing, I was once again united with my… Former best friend? Or would that be the wrong thing to say? In any case, he was with me.

As for the second reason, well… I found that whenever I was around him, Edward would be talking to me in my ear, always whispering words of warning. I knew I was using him at least a little bit. I couldn't tell him that, what would he think of me?

My train of thought was interrupted by Jacob's alarm clock, signaling that it was five-thirty in the morning. And that today was the first day of school.

Originally, it was going to be just me going to school, but it would give Jacob something to do. So he enrolled.

He groaned from the bedroom, and slammed the alarm clock down.

I stood up off of the sofa and wandered into the kitchen. Jacob needed breakfast, and I would provide it.

I thought about what he had said, I would start to think of him as a chore. I hope that that would not be the case, and I didn't think it was possible, as I really _loved_ to cook. It was hard to explain why I did… Just the fact that somebody, no less myself, who can't taste anything can make something that was good to eat amazed me.

I quickly turned the waffle iron on and threw together a batter. It was huge, but he _was_ a werewolf who ate a lot. If all else failed, he could eat them tomorrow.

When I was finished making the waffles, I set them on the counter with the butter and syrup and a glass of milk.

I was starting to feel like his mother. It made me feel like somebody needed me, and that my existence wasn't just a waste. It was a really good feeling.

And then Jake walked into the room, yawning. He shook his head a bit, droplets of water flying all over the room from his hair.

"Morning, Bella."

"Hey, Jake. Breakfast is ready."

"Thanks, it looks good."

"I'm going to go get ready for school."

With that, I walked into my bedroom and dug through my drawers to find out an outfit that was acceptable for school.

After staying in the bathroom for about an hour, I came out into the living room where Jacob was sitting, waiting for me.

"Took you long enough!"

"The bathroom is my_ space._ I go in there to relax sometimes, this morning being one of those times. And plus, I'm a girl. Girls are just… drawn to the bathroom. It's in our genes."

Jacob made a face.

"Well, are you ready to go, then?"

"Ready if you are."

"Let's get this over with."

We walked out to the front yard, and quickly realized we had no car, as I had taken mine back to the rental place and Jacob's truck actually belonged to his aunt, so it was taken when she passed.

Crap.

Beside me, Jacob's schoolbag dropped on the cement with a faint _thud._

"No car. That's not good…" I said, chuckling nervously.

"So… You want to walk?"

I looked at him and arched my eyebrow. Why would I need to walk? It would be impossible to make it there on time, and I could run faster than my car.

When Jacob saw my expression, he said, "I know, I know. Stupid question, right? But I was just kind of thinking that maybe we could, you know… Talk, or something."

"Talking sounds good right now."

We started off down the road.

"So… What _exactly_ have you been doing the past couple of years?" I started with the first question that came into my mind.

His body went rigged, like he was nervous. But he shrugged his shoulders and said, "Nothing really. School and stuff. Babysitting my aunt. So where's your car?"

He should know where it was. He took it back with me. "The rental place. Why'd you change the subject?"

"What are you talking about?"

"You know exactly what I'm talking about."

Jacob sighed in defeat. "Okay… You know when I was talking about Sam, and how things were… difficult?"

"Yeah…"

"Well, he was kind of angry with me. No, 'angry' is the wrong word. I should say he was more… disappointed."

"Disappointed? Why?"

"Sam wanted – or I guess 'wants' is a better word - me to take the Alpha spot. But I'm not ready to do that, and so I left. He's called me a couple times and asked me to come back. And that's what made it so hard _not_ to. He asked. None of his 'demands' this time. And then before I bumped into you, I told him I was thinking about accepting my responsibility. But then, I had a reason to stay here, and all of that changed."

A reason? I wondered what that could be.

"Your Aunt?"

When I said this, Jacob sighed and stopped walking. He turned to face me, and took my hands in his.

Due to shock, I assumed, at first I wanted to pull them away and run. But them I felt the _warmth, _- and not just because how hot they were. It was like a glove was being reunited with its age-old hand. Completely broken in and comfortable.

"Jake?"

He opened his mouth as if he was going to say something. Changing his mind, he closed his mouth and dropped one of my hands and started walking, pulling me along. He didn't say anything, and so I didn't ask.

For now, the subject had been dropped. I wanted desperately to know what was causing him so much pain, but I knew not to bring it up again. He would talk when he was ready to talk.

We kept walking along the road until finally, the trees cleared and we came to a highway. Looking around, I realized that the school was across the highway that was buzzing with cars.

And then I was scared. There were so many people – I didn't know if I could do it. But it wasn't because I was afraid that I would loose control. After hanging out around a werewolf, I think I might be safe.

No, this fear was different. It was completely irrational, but it was still there. I was afraid of the _school._ I hadn't been around so many people in a while, and it vaguely reminded me of my school in the Paradise Valley. There were chain link fences, metal detectors. I grinned as I remembered what I had thought of my school in Forks – where was the feel of institution? _Well,_ I thought grimly, _that won't be a problem here._

I pressed the button on the crosswalk post and waited until the light turned green, signaling for us to start walking.

Jacob tugged me along and we eventually made our way across the huge campus. It _was_ a bit crowded, but not as bad as I had thought it to be. We spotted the High School, which was not really that hard _to_ spot. It was the biggest building on the campus, and it was bustling with students.

"You excited?" Jacob asked me. I looked at him, my expression saying it all, and then He laughed. "C'mon, it won't be _that_ bad."

We walked through the front office doors. The room was very bright – there was a huge window which was open, helping to light the room. The receptionist was on a computer, not paying attention to the room. So I gently cleared my throat just loud enough for her to hear me.

She glanced up at us from behind her bifocals. When she spoke, her voice sounded like she was intimidated by something. My presence, I guessed. After all, what _normal _human wasn't?

I sighed… A few years ago, that would have been me.

"Can I help you?"

I smiled. "Yes. My name is Bell-"

Jake nudged me in the ribs.

"Er… Marie Swan and this is Jacob Black. I talked to you on the phone, if you remember?"

"Oh! Right, of course!"

She pulled her glasses off of her face and shoved them onto the top of her head.

"Now… I have your schedules here. Homeroom starts in about…" she glanced at her wristwatch… "Three minutes. You need to hurry – Mr. Campbell's room is just out the door, down the hallway, and to your right. Here's a hint: _Do_ try not to be late, he doesn't really like tardiness. 'Punctuality is key', apparently."

I chuckled. "Thanks, Ms. Launem…"

She stood up and came out from behind her desk and shoved the schedules into our hands. "Don't be shy. Go on, and come back if you have any questions."

"Ms. Launem, a map?"

"Oh, don't worry about that. Eric's got all of that for you. Go on, dears!"

She pointed to a door that I could only assume lead out to the main hallway. When I didn't move, she pushed our backs.

Somehow I got the gist that she wanted us to leave.

"Thank-you, Ms. Launem…"

"One minuet! Go on, Hurry!"

I tensed; this wasn't a voice from anybody in the room. Edward.

"Marie? Are you quite alright?"

I quickly composed myself, nodding. Without another word, I left the office and started to power walk down the hallway, scanning the doors for Mr. Campbell's name.

"So are you talking to me again?" I muttered. Ever since Jacob moved in permanently, his voice had never spoke a sentence that did not include the words "Black, Dog," or "Dangerous."

Jacob was next to me, keeping pace easily. I hadn't realized he was listening. "What do you mean?"

"Nothing. Sorry."

And then I stopped, seeing Mr. Campbell's name on a door. Jacob ran into me.

"Let's go."

I pushed open the door and entered. Everybody turned my way, and gawked. _How Flattering._ But then I noticed a girl. Her hair was long and billowy, very pretty. She faced the opposite direction of me, and so I couldn't see her face. But somehow I got the feeling that I knew her from somewhere. Jacob came to my side and the door shut just as the Monotone of the bell went off. The back two desks were vacant, and so I pulled Jacob by the wrist and sat down. There was nobody standing up, and so I guessed that there wasn't a teacher here.

When everybody kept staring, I smiled pleasantly and waved. "Hello. I'm Marie Swan."

The door opened once again, and a tall man with short blonde hair came in. He was dressed nicely – with khaki pants and a blue button-up shirt on. When he spoke, his voice counteracted his appearance. It was full of positive energy, and I could _feel_ it radiating off of him.

He smiled at us and said, "Morning, homeroom!"

All the kids smiled back at him and said, "Morning, Mr. Campbell!"

He walked over to his desk and put down a briefcase. Pulling out a file with papers, he glanced up at Jacob and me.

"Miss Swan, Mr. Black, I presume?"

When he said this, a girl sitting at the table in front of mine with four others tensed up. She turned to look at me – I couldn't get a good look at her face. I only thought that I had seen her before. Ignoring the action, I said, "Yes, sir."

"Well! Isn't that cool? We have two new students." He sat on his desk, facing us. There were about five people sitting at the other table. "Well, Class – You know what to do."

The first one – a boy – smiled at me. I didn't miss how it was directed _only_ toward me, as did Jacob. He immediately put his arm around my shoulder and smirked.

The boy threw a glance toward Jacob and cleared his throat.

"Hey. My name's Derek, and I'm a sophomore."

A sophomore, huh..? He looked older than that – maybe he got held back.

We moved through the rest of the group quickly – there were three girls sitting there and two girls. We soon came to the last girl, the girl who had turned to look at me when he said my name. She turned toward me once more and I almost gagged. Her eyes – like liquid, golden topaz – must have been as surprised as mine were, if not more. And when she turned to me I suddenly realized why I felt like I had known her from somewhere. Fact is, I _had_ known her.

"Angela Weber, Junior. Nice to meet you."

Holy _Crow._


	10. I Miss You

**I hope this one's out soon enough for you guys. But I just got back from a day-trip to Phoenix. (Six hours in a car and we don't even stay at a relative's house… Ugh. Day-trips to Phoenix at _this_ time of year… They suck. It's way hot outside down there. But then again, it's always hot down there. Duhh.. Blonde moment over.) So anyway I'm tired and cranky. Hope the chapter doesn't show it. :)**

**--**

_Recap - _**"Angela Weber, Junior. Nice to meet you."**

**Holy _Crow._**

--

Oh, my gosh. Angela? Angela Weber? How small _is_ this world?

I stared at her, my eyes wide and mouth hanging open ever so slightly. She chuckled and tuned around in her desk. I heard the _ripping_ sound of paper and I felt the _wisp_ of the air. There was a note lying on the desk.

I quickly ripped it open and read,

_Bella – _

_I'll explain after class if you do? Come to my locker – 218. _

_Ang_

I tucked the note into my bag and Mr. Campbell coughed, which brought me back to the moment.

"So, Marie… Would you like to tell the class your history?"

Oh, great…

"Well, I was born in a little town in Washington. And then my mother and I moved to Phoenix, in Arizona. Paradise Valley district, if anybody's heard of it…?"

Mr. Campbell smiled. "You were a Trojan, eh? Don't look very tan." I laughed and said, "I get burned from the sun, not tan. We can't all be lucky…" and continued.

"Then I moved back to Washington with my Dad, and then I moved here. Not all that exciting."

I then nudged Jake in the ribs, and he told everybody that he was from the same little town that I was, up until now.

When Jake finished talking, Mr. Campbell clapped his hands together and shouted, "Okay! Everybody up!"

The class stood up from their chairs without a question. Apparently, this was something they did often.

"Get a marker and go up to the white board – I want you to write your favorite quote on the board and circle it." After a slight pause, he added, "And don't forget to write down the person who said it, if you know."

With that, the class ran up to the board. This would be easy – I knew my favorite quote without a doubt. Sighing, I uncapped the purple dry erase marker and began to write. It was not easy as the man who had said it was repeating it into my ear this very moment.

_Be safe._

I breathed in and out very slowly and sat back down.

Everybody else was standing at the board, writing sentences. If length were a problem, I would be in trouble as mine consisted of only two words.

When the rest of the class had finished writing theirs, Mr. Campbell went up to the board and chuckled in places.

"These are all very amazing quotes. But I have to say that my personal favorite-" he proceeded to circle mine with a marker, "-is this one. Can anybody tell me why?"

The boy who had smiled at me earlier leaned over across his table and whispered, "Because the new girl is a kiss-up." He laughed, and I wouldn't have it. This quote meant the world to me. Was it _my_ fault that the teacher preferred it?

"Excuse me?"

He looked at me, too innocent. "What?"

"What did you just say?" I said through gritted teeth. I was fighting back the urge to get up and smash his face in.

"Mr. Campbell, I didn't say anything!"

"This is why I really do not guys…" I stopped to think for a millisecond. "No, 'guys' is too specific of a word. This is why I really do not like people like you. You think you can just get up and mock my pain without me even saying anything? I'm not an idiot, you know." Even in my own voice, I could hear the very faint sounds of hysteria.

"Marie!" Mr. Campbell said, sounding panicked. "You're obviously upset. Did he say something so horrible that he deserves to go see the principle?"

For a moment, I contemplated saying yes. But I knew that this was what he wanted. I could see it in Derek's eyes… he was daring me to say yes and have it over with. What good would 'giving in' do? So I decided to fight back.

"I think so. But probably not. See, Mr. Campbell - he called me a kiss-up. But that's not why I'm upset. Somebody very important to me – my… father – said this to me. And if Derek" I sneered his name "-is going to laugh at me for something that my father said before he left… I'm sorry, Mr. Campbell, but I really don't think that I'll be able to get along in here with him. Do you want me to go speak to Ms. Launem about changing my schedule?"

Mr. Campbell sighed. "No, Marie. That's alright. And as for you-" he stuck his pointer finger out at Derek "- I want to see you after class. You're all dismissed; have a good day."

I sighed a sigh of contentment, but then remembered…

"Mr. Campbell, Ms. Launem said that you had some things for me..?"

He looked at me from behind his bifocals.

"Right... Yes… On the desk there, there should be a bundle of things for you to do. Filling out things like forms and... surveys. Sound like fun." He smiled, and I chuckled. "Loads of fun, right? Anyway… thanks, Mr. Campbell."

I stood up and gathered all of my things. Looking around, I found that Angela was nowhere to be seen. And that we still had ten minutes until the bell rang, which meant that I had a little bit more time to find my locker.

"Well… That was interesting." Jacob muttered to me.

"'Interesting' just about sums it up," I agreed with a laugh.

"Did you notice the other bloodsucker?"

I rolled my eyes at the nickname. "Her name is Angela Weber," I told him.

"Wait… You know her?"

"Yeah. She used to go to my high school back in Forks."

"Cool, cool. Well, I gotta go find my locker and figure out how to open it. See you later, Bella."

I muttered a good-bye and then looked down at the front of the stack of papers Mr. Campbell had given me. It had 'Locker # - 038, combination – 33-11-33. Junior hall until we get an available space, srry.' That was alright – If I remember correctly, Angela was a junior. That would be easy to remember, even putting aside my photographic memory.

I stuffed it into my pocket and began wandering the halls until I came across the junior hall, which held my locker. Moving down it, I located number thirty-eight. It looked like it was in good condition, so I was happy with it.

I went to open it and then suddenly, there was a wisp of air and Angela was standing next to me, leaning against the locker doors. In surprise, I dropped my books and then instinctively let out a shriek of joy.

"Oh my gosh! Angela!" I went to give her a hug, which she returned enthusiastically. I couldn't believe she was here!

"Bella!"

After my episode of shock was over, I moved to pick up my books. While doing that, I asked her, "So what are you doing here? How? When? Why aren't you answering any of my questions!"

Angela laughed. "Because you won't let me, silly. As to your first question, I'm here going to school with my distant cousin."

"Angela! That doesn't tell me anything, though…"

"You're right, I'm sorry."

"But what I really want to know is how?"

She smiled grimly and said, "That might be a long story."

I shrugged. "We've got time, don't we?"

"Yeah, I suppose we do. Where to begin…"

"How about from when this," I gestured to her body, "happened?" Sitting down on the bench by a vending machine, I waited for her to start.

"Well, I'll start from when you disappeared. Nobody knew where you were, of course, but we thought you were mauled or something. They searched and searched for you until finally you were declared dead.

"Well, not many months after that, somebody called Rhett came. I remember thinking, 'What strange eyes'. They were crimson, you see. He asked where you were, and when nobody could tell him, he said, 'Useless thing, humans.' And he attacked.

"The first person he went for was Ben. He was going to kill me, but then he stood up for me. I will never forget that day. Not if I live a million years…"

And then I saw that she was shaking. I pieced the information together, painfully.

"Oh, Angela... I am so sorry."

I did the only thing I knew how to do – I gave her a hug. She hugged me back and started to dry-sob and sputter out Ben's name.

Overcome with guilt, I too began to cry tears that were real to me.

"This is my fault. If I hadn't gone walking that day, I wouldn't have gone missing. He wouldn't have come for you. Ben would still be alive, Angela. I am so sorry…"

I held her tighter, and she started to calm down a little bit.

"Bella, never let yourself think that this was your fault. Not ever. Because it wasn't, and you and I both know that."

I sighed and said, "You're right… But I still feel guilty. Did anybody else… survive? Who died?"

She pulled back and sighed. "Jessica, Lauren, Eric and Mike are dead."

"And Tyler?"

"Well, I'm not sure about him. But the only thing I can do is hope he made it out of the school alive. Which doesn't make sense, of course, because it was absolutely crawling with newborns. But we can never be sure."

"No, we can't…"

She sniffed and then smiled lightly.

"So…" Angela asked me. "What about you?"

"Well… I don't really remember it that clearly," I lied. Honestly, I had memorized what had happened and played it over and over in my head all day. I just wasn't ready to talk about it yet. "I just know that I went on a walk and then came across someone called Victoria. She was thirsty and planned on killing me, but then Jake came and saved me. But then he had to leave, because I was changing."

Angela wrinkled her nose.

"You mean the wolf you walked in with?"

I nodded.

"How can you stand him?"

"Well, we were friends before the change. Fast bonds die hard, I guess," I said shrugging. "It's not so bad once you get used to it."

"Whatever you say…" she paused for a moment. "Care to elaborate on the scene you started with Derek? I know it wasn't something your dad would say…"

I cringed. "Well, before Edward left, he left me that note when he went hunting. It's just so important to me, even though I shouldn't care. He left me, and isn't coming back," I said, trying not to sound emotional.

Angela saw right through that and wrapped me in a hug once more. "I miss Ben, too, Bella. Just be strong, everything will be alright, in the end."

It was times like these that I was glad that I had a shoulder to cry on in life.

_After School, Jake is asleep_

I sat on the couch, thinking. Well, one thing I could say was that the first day of school was... Eventful.

Our – that is to say, Jake and me's – schedule was different than it was originally supposed to be. I had had three of the five classes with him, and four with Angela.

Ah, Angela. Something she said today struck me deeply.

_"...Just be strong. Everything will be alright, in the end."_

What did she know? Edward was gone. Never to return, never to love me again.

Life was depressing.

But then again, she had said it with absolute certainty. Maybe she knew something that I didn't. Or maybe she was just trying to convince herself, or make me feel better.

But the day had gone better than I had originally planned. _Life _had gone better than originally planned. After all, there is no great loss without some small gain. I had lost Edward, but I had also gained two friends when I thought that I was alone in the world.

My MP3 player had decided to play Blink 182s "I Miss You," how cliché. Listening to the song, I almost started crying. It was so weird... the song exactly described my feelings. But then it got to be more than I was able to handle. So I chucked it across the room and it hit the wall, shattering.

Oh, snap. Well, no MP3 Player for now.

I needed to get out of the house. That much I knew. Quickly scribbling a note to Jake in case I wasn't back by the time he woke with directions on where to find the Pancakes, I left the house and went hunting.

**Hope that one was long enough. And I hope it made sense. I hope a lot… Ha-ha.**

**I was going to be like, "End. Just Kidding." But I decided that I couldn't do that to Anna, again. **

**You know the Drill. R&R. (I only got this one out so fast because people liked the last one. And because I don't want to do science homework. Which tells us what, exactly?**

**One, Review faster and Chapters come out faster.**

**Two, Mary's got a bad grade in Science. Hehe.)**


	11. Decisions

**This chapter might seem like filler, but it's a key point to the plot**

_Later that year…_

"Bella, did you hear?" Angela asked me excitedly. "Ms. Launem's going to have a baby girl!"

I was paying attention now; setting my book on the table beside the couch. "Is that why she's been gone so long, then?" Ms. Launem had been absent from the school for maybe six months.

"Yeah… It's a miracle, of course…"

"Why is that?" I asked her. Angela looked at me and made a face.

"Do you realize how old she is? Maybe forty eight or so? Wow, right?"

"Oh... I knew that," I said with a chuckle. 'Wow' didn't even cover it. "I'm very happy for her."

Angela nodded. "But it _does_ seem a bit unfair," she said with a sigh.

"I wish I could have a child."

"Don't we all…" Angela muttered. "Well, I had better go hunting, Bella. It's been a while."

"Okay, Ang."

"And then I've got to go back to my place. I'm not finished with that paper yet for English."

I sighed and slumped back onto the couch, not looking at anything. "See you later."

She showed herself out without saying anything else.

I started talking to myself about what it would be like with a little girl in the house. I knew it was a stupid thing to do, but I couldn't help myself. And then I heard the front door open, and I knew Jacob was home from his job.

"Hey, Bella."

"Hi, Jake," I said with no emotion.

"Something wrong?"

"No, not really… I figured out why Ms. Launem's been gone."

"Oh, cool. Why's she been gone?"

I sighed deeply. "She's expecting."

Jake sat down next to me with a Coke in his hand.

"Oh." Awkward silences… they were awkward. Finally, Jake wrapped his arms around me and gave me a hug.

"Bella, I'm so sorry."

"About that… I've been thinking, Jake…"

"About what, honey?"

"Well, I want to have a baby."

Edward snarled in my ear, and Jake spit coke all over the room. His expression was hilarious, I wish I had a camera.

"Not like that, stupid." I hit him on the arm. "I want to adopt."

"Oh," he sighed in relief. But then he was tense again. "Bella, how could we afford it?"

"I don't know, Jake. I really don't. But maybe I could go to work full time? I've already finished my schooling at Tanya's house – she taught me at her house to keep my mind off of blood. And I could take collage courses on line so I wouldn't have to leave home to do that, so I could get a better job."

Jacob sighed. "You really want this, Bella?"

I nodded.

"If you really want it, we'll do it."

I smiled and then hugged him. "Thank you, Jake. Thank you, so much."

"I love you, Bella," he said as he ruffled my hair. But then he froze, like he had said too much. I wondered why…

Oh. That was the first time that he had said he loved me since we had met again. But of course he did… Why would he be here, if he didn't hold some attraction to me? I knew, in the pit of my gut, that I loved him, too.

"I love you too, Jake."

I kissed his cheek and slid onto his lap.

We sat like that, hand in hand, until he fell asleep. He was very warm, and I was very cold. So it shouldn't have surprised me when he started shivering.

Reluctantly, I got up and fetched him a blanket.

Running to the computer, I turned it on and went to the search engine and typed in 'Adoption in Brentwood, PA.'

My modem was faster than I was used to, and so it came up in about three seconds. There were many places to choose from, but in the end I chose the website that looked promising.

Shea Adoption Centre, where 'dreams become reality.' It had many intervals of ages, and so I clicked on 'Infants.'

I browsed through all of the babies until I found one that I wanted to meet. She had a small amount of brown hair poking out of her head and green eyes. Her name was perfect, too: Adaline. I read about her.

_Adaline is a beautiful two month old who is up for closed adoption. She was born on March Seventeenth of this year. She is a beautiful baby who loves to play with animals and make friends. Adaline is good around strangers, and she refuses to eat carrot baby food. If you would like to visit her, please call and schedule an appointment. There are waiting lists to meet the children, so call now. Even if after hours, do not hesitate to call!_

Without even hesitating, I dialed the number. And amazingly, somebody picked it up.

"Hello, Shea Adoption Centre. This is Rachel Landis, Can I help you?" The background sounded like somebody else was in there, moving around, so I guessed that they had pretty late hours. And there had to be somebody there at all times, as it _was_ an adoption centre.

"Hello, this is Bella Swan. I was just browsing your website and I came across the most _adorable_ little girl ever! I wanted to meet her. Adaline?"

"Adaline? Alright. She hasn't had visitors in quite a while, and her list is empty. When would you like to meet her?"

"Would sometime tomorrow be alright?" It was supposed to be Overcast tomarrow.

"Tomorrow… is seven too early?"

I grinned. "No, ma'am. Seven is perfect."

"Are you going to need directions?"

"No, I think I'll be able to find it."

"Alright, Bella Swan! We'll see you tomorrow at seven, then!"

"Thank-you so much."

"You're welcome, good night!"

I heard the dial tone after that. Smiling, I hung up the phone. I decided that I would go to Angela's house to break the news to her.

--

Of course, she was ecstatic for me. I wouldn't have been surprised if everybody in the world had heard her say, "YOU'RE HAVING A BABY!!"

I felt guilty at first as I was going to have a child and she was not. But when I asked her about it, she waved her hand and said, "I can't take care of a child. I can help you do it. That's enough for me."

We talked and giggled about what it would be like to have a child around. And a little girl, too. I would have somebody to dress up! Oh, what fun that would turn out to be. I now saw the reason behind Alice's madness.

Angela came with me and Jake to go see Adaline. She was, of course, the best little girl in the world. I knew I wanted to take her home.

Jacob had looked at her and immediately fallen in love. "She's so adorable!"

Adaline was in a crib, silently looking up at three strangers through her big, beautiful, green eyes. She didn't cry, she didn't smile. But that's to be expected when she was two months old.

We hummed her to sleep when it was time to leave.

I went back out to the car with Angela with a stack of paperwork that I needed to fill out before they considered me right for adoption. Jacob had stayed behind to talk to Ms. Landis about something.

He looked troubled when he exited the building, so I asked him what was wrong. "Nothing at all," he had said. But he kept throwing sideways glances at me.

Later that night, I had all of the paperwork finished and back at the Adoption Centre. They would review it and then tell me if I could adopt her. "This process takes time. I will let you know in about a month or so."

A month. I would have to wait one month to see if I could call her child my own.

"Jake, have they decided yet?" I asked him for the fiftieth time.

"No, Bella. Not yet. Keep studying."

I grumbled and turned back to the computer screen. I was taking my collage courses to get my four-year degree, and then I would go to school to become… well, I was still undecided.

And then, one day when Jake came in after work, he had _the_ biggest smile in the history of the world.

In the blink of an eye, I was at his side, begging him for information with my eyes.

He picked me up and twirled me around. "I'm going to be a father!"

I gasped and hugged him. I was surprised, even though I had every reason to know that I would be able to adopt her.

When Jacob put me down on the ground again, he looked me in the eyes and said, "But there's a catch."

"What? Jake, tell me! I'll do anything…"

When I said that, his smile got even wider.

"Jake? What is it?"

"Well, this adoption centre requires that the person who adopts the child… they have to be…"

"Spit it out, Jake!"

"They have to be married."

I froze. Married? I didn't know if I could do that. But I loved him. Not as deeply as I loved Edward, but the feeling was still there. And I loved Adaline. I would do _anything_ to call her my daughter.

Even the things that deserved to get me thrown into the nuthouse.

And besides – Jake wouldn't live forever. I felt guilty even thinking that. But I just didn't know if I'd be a very good wife, and I didn't know if I'd want to be with him the rest of my life. I knew that I was only going to go into it with half a heart. My expression must have worried Jake, because he said, "If you don't want to, Bella, I'll understand. We don't have to take her-"

I quieted him. "No, Jake."

"But Bella... I don't want you to make a decision that you're going to regret. Now, I know that you've said that you love me."

"And it's true!"

"I know that... But Bella, I also know that you still love somebody else."

When he said that, his eyes were soft. I cringed, because I knew it was true. I still loved Edward. I was such an idiot.

"I know I do. But I love you, Jake. I love her, and I love you. I want this family."

"I want this family, too, Bella. But I just don't want you to make a bad decision."

"Jake, you are not a bad decision. I need you and Adaline right now. I'll need you for a long time, Jake. I'll do it."

I could tell that he was about to protest again. But changing his mind, he smiled at me and said, "I love you, Bella."

"And I love you, Jake."

Later, he promised me that he would buy me a ring after we got Adaline... I got nervous when he said that, I hated money being spent on me. But then he also promised me that I could pick it out. So I could make it as cheap as I liked.

Angela helped me plan. It was a simple wedding that would take place in Angela's back yard, which was spacious and secluded. I would rather it be in Vegas, but Angela nor Jacob would hear any talk.

We didn't have many details yet, although we knew it was to be in the near future. As the date grew nearer, my emotions were thrown out of proportion.

I was marrying my best friend, so naturally I was excited. And it was also very sudden. Which made me scared. And then I was worried. Would I be able to do this?

I just hoped that I was making the right decision.

**I know, it's all happening very fast. I'm trying to hurry it up for future chapters. And I apologize if it's at all confusing. It is kind of late. I'm trying to pay attention.**


	12. Invitations

FAQ

**FAQ**

**Will this be a JxB Story? **Sort of. I Ship Canon. ExB All the way, Mann. (No icky love triangles here, at least not ExBxJ.)

**Will Edward come back?** Yeah. If he wasn't going to, I wouldn't be writing it. Because I love Edward. He is my fictitious hero. Whom I proudly stalk.

**Why marry Jake so soon?** Because she wants to get Adaline. More than she realizes.

**Is Mary crazy? JxB won't work! **Yes, I know it won't work. That's what's so beautiful about it. (So no, it will not last forever.)

**Okay so if you have any more Qs, PM me. **

**Sorry if the chapter seems kind of forced. I'm on Aleve right now and it's making me jittery.**

**I don't own.**

_**Edward**_

I stood still among the midst of my busy family. They were getting ready to visit Tanya's family in Juneau.

_They._

Ever since I had left Bella, there had been no _we. _I had totally disconnected myself from everybody, even Alice.

It hurt to see how much I was hurting them. But what choice did I have? I had practically committed suicide, taking myself from Bella. And when I had gone to revive my soul, to see her blush scarlet and trip over the air, she was… gone.

Dead, or so the story said. Her body had never been found which lead me to believe that she wasn't dead. In two hours I had skimmed the whole Hoh Rain Forest, and she was nowhere to be found.

Lying there on the ground that day, I had sworn to myself that I would not stop until I found her. That's what gave me the will to even _function_ properly; Bella.

I loved her so much. It was almost painful. But never _ever _pathetic. No ammount of love for Bella would ever fall under that catagory.

The only reason I was here now was because I had to take a break from searching. I didn't want to, no. But Rosalie had come to get me, saying the family missed me. That's what got me to come back, Rosalie came. If it had been anybody else, I wouldn't have listened.

I can't explain it right, what it meant to me that she came. Usually she wouldn't have given me a second glance. And for her to come out into a practical wasteland to attempt to bring me home, well... that was worth more than I could say.

If Bella was in love again, _cringe,_ then so be it. I just needed to know that she was alive.

Alice put a hand on my shoulder, breaking my train of thought.

"Edward, we're leaving now. If you need anything, call and we'll be here. Don't get into trouble, please. We all love you."

I heard what she didn't say, or even think. The thought made me almost laugh. I wouldn't dare go to Italy unless I found solid proof that she was dead.

But I wouldn't allow myself to think about that.

I nodded stiffly, but they were gone.

**I hope that answers some of your questions. I've been dying to write an EPOV for days. Sorry if it sucks. I don't do EPOVs all that often.**

_**Bella**_

I sat down at the kitchen table with a _huff _as I skimmed down the list of people. We had invited Angela and that was pretty much it.

But then I had an idea.

"Hey Jake…" I called to him. "What about Tanya?"

He came out from the bedroom. "Who?"

"You know… My friend from Juneau?"

He glanced at me. "Oh, right."

"Still don't know?" I laughed when he shook his head.

"She's the one who helped me get back on my feet after the change. I owe my life to her."

Jake nodded. "If you want her to come, invite her."

I frowned. "But that only pulls our list up to what… six?" **(Correct me if I'm wrong… Doesn't the Denali Clan consist of five people, ****Tanya****, Kate, Carmen, Eleazer, and ****Irina?****)**

Jake shrugged. "Have them invite friends."

I swatted his arm. "Can you at least _pretend_ that you care who shows up?"

"I care, really."

"I'm sure you do. Listen, why don't you call some of the Pack? It'd be nice to see them again."

He shook his head. "Bella, I don't know if that would be a good idea. They might not take it too well when they find out that I'm going to…" he stopped suddenly.

I arched my brow. "That you're going to _what,_ exactly? Marry a vampire?"

"Bella, please. Can we not talk about this now?"

"Why not!" I shouted. "Now's as good as ever. Why should it matter what they think?"

"It doesn't, Bella!"

"Then why are you making such a big deal about it? Call!"

I shoved my phone at him.

"I'm not making a big deal about it, Bella. You are." He set my phone on the table. Before I could say anything else, he added, "If it makes you happy, Bella, I'll try to call. But give me time. To prepare or… what not, alright?"

I sighed, nodding.

"In the mean time, why don't you call Tanya?" Jake said. But I had already dialed the number and it was ringing.

"Hello?"

"Tanya?"

"Yes…" Her voice sounded confused. I smiled.

"Guess what Marie's doing right now!"

It took her a moment to figure out what I was implying.

"Marie? Oh my gosh! You're calling me!"

"Yeah! So how have you been?"

"Oh, I've been fine. Now what about you?"

"I'm good, Tanya. But anyway, guess what I'm doing right now!"

"What? Planning a massacre?"

"Funny, but no."

"Well, tell me you goose!"

"I'm inviting you to my wedding!"

The end of the phone was silent for a moment, and then she started to scream.

"Oh my gosh!! You're getting married! Marie! Ahhe!!"

I laughed.

"What's he like?"

"Well… for one thing, he's not really like you and I."

"What's that supposed to mean? Is he a human?"

"Not exactly. You'll see when you get here!"

She started to scream excitedly again. We talked for a while, and then I gave her directions to the house and the date.

"Oh, Marie?" she said.

"Yeah?"

"I have a couple of friends who will be here then. Non-human blood drinking vampire friends. Would it be alright if I brought them along? I've told them all about you, and I'm sure they'd love to be there."

"That would be fine, I guess. But anyway, I have to go. Dinner's burning!" I could smell the baked potatoes burning. "Love you, Tanya. Call me!" Before she could process the fact that I had perishable food in my house, I hung up.

What had I done? I had just invited a coven of vegetarian vampires that I didn't even know to my wedding.

I froze.

Vegetarian vampires? The only other ones that I knew of besides Tanya's family were the Cullen's.

I gasped for breath. The Cullen's coming to my wedding? Oh no, oh no, oh no. They wouldn't say anything, of course. But Edward. What would he think? Would he talk to me about it? Ask me questions? Or worse… Would he even _care?_ He had his distractions.

I cringed. The thought that he didn't care if I married Jake was… unbearable. I still loved Edward, and if he came here now, I don't know what I would do. Beg him to be with me, I suppose. And then what? Be humiliated?

Well, maybe it wasn't them. Maybe somebody else had 'seen the light' or whatever and stopped drinking from Humans. Possible.

But not likely.

I groaned and decided to go to Angela's to talk about it.

_Later._

She had been somewhat helpful.

"If it _is_ Edward's family, well… It's fate. You can marry Edward instead and get Adaline."

She was joking, of course. And I appreciated the effort.

"Thanks, Ang."

"If I were you, I would let them come. If Edward wants to, he'll say something. And I have a feeling that he'll want to."

But how could she be so sure?

I wanted him to want to say something. I wanted it with every fiber of my being. But did he want it?

I was over reacting. It probably wasn't even the Cullen's. I kept repeating that inside my head.

_It's not them. It's not them. It's not them._

But what if it _was? _What then? What was I going to do…?

**R&R.**


	13. Premonitions

I don't own

**Because I feel impressed with the outcome of the reviews, I decided that I would be nice and put up another chapter while I wait for my CD to finish burning.**

**And because Excedrin makes me realllyyyyy jittery for a loonnnggggg time. (I took one at about ten this morning. It's now ten at night and I'm still hyper. Can't. Stop. Twitching.)**

**I don't own.**

_**Alice**_

We arrived in Juneau a little under six hours later.

In the car, Jasper held my hand and whispered, "Alice… You're worried."

I could only nod and look out of the window.

"About what, love?"

"I can't explain it. I keep getting this premonition. It's like I'm seeing a wedding."

I felt his hands start to massage my shoulders. "That doesn't seem so bad."

I pulled the Porsche over to the shoulder and shook his hands off. As I looked into his jet black eyes, I said, "You'd think that, wouldn't you? But then… everything fades. I hate being blind. It's not only that, I just keep feeling that something is just… _wrong._ I don't know what, exactly."

Jasper didn't say anything; he only wrapped me in a hug. He understood the way I was feeling. He even felt the way I was feeling.

"You'll figure it out, Alice. You always do."

"How can you be sure?"

"I can't. But I have faith in you, darling."

I sighed. "Thank you, Jasper. I love you."

He pulled back and smiled. "I love you, too. Do you want me to drive, so you can concentrate on working on whatever it is you need to be working on?"

"Yes, please."

He then pulled me onto his lap and then moved over to the drivers seat, putting me on the passenger's side.

"Jeeze, Alice. Could you be any shorter?" he said as he moved the seat back to make room for his legs. Trying to lighten the mood, I suspected.

I smiled weakly at him.

"Sorry. You're really worried about this, aren't you?"

"Yeah, I really am. And I shouldn't be. I mean, people get married all the time, right?"

Jasper nodded. "But you're worried, which has me worried. Even putting the fact that I feel what you feel aside."

"Yeah, I know, and I'm sorry… I just hope I can figure it out." Glancing at my watch, I added, "We should probably get going. They'll be wondering if we decided to turn around."

"It's not too late to do that, you know…"

I smiled. "Just drive, sweetheart. I'll be right here, holding your hand so that big, scary, Katie doesn't frighten you off, okay?"

I was teasing him, just a little. The last time we were here, Kate was resisting the urge to shamelessly flirt with him. I'll admit I was a little bit irritated at first, but it was just so hilarious.

Jasper shook his head and I felt immediately calm.

"Sorry, Jasper."

He only smiled.

When we arrived at Tanya's home, we walked down the path that led to the porch through the cool night air.

"The stars are beautiful," I sighed.

"Not as beautiful as you," Jasper said, smiling at me.

I reached up on my tip-toes to peck Jasper's cheek. (It also helped that I was on the top step and he the bottom one.)

We walked up to the door and before I could knock, Irina opened the door.

"I was wondering where you two snuck off to!"

"Hello, Irina."

The sound of my voice alerted her to the fact that something was wrong. She looked at Jasper questioningly.

"Later," I said before she could ask.

"Well, come in then! We're all having so much fun. And there's news that Tanya wants to share with us!"

We followed Irina inside. The house was large, and vaguely reminded me of our home in forks.

After visiting a bit, I sat on the floor at Jaspers feet.

"So what news do you have for us?"

Tanya answered. "Well, it's more of an invitation, really. A friend of mine – Marie, if you remember me telling you about her? Anyway, she is getting married. And she would love it if you could come! And Edward, too. He must get lonely."

Emmett nodded. "We should get him out of that house."

From the corner of my eye, I saw Rosalie hit him. I thought I picked up the sentence, "You think that he'd _want _to go to a wedding?"

Carlisle, apparently, had a question. "Would you care to tell us more about her? Likes, dislikes? I'd love to get her a wedding gift."

Tanya nodded. "Of course. She loves listening to the piano, but never really learned how to play. And Alice?"

"Yes?"

"She does not shop. So I'm afraid a gift card wouldn't work."

"Darn," I said in mock disappointment.

Everybody laughed, except me. I was busy putting the pieces together. She didn't shop, and she loves to listen to the piano…

"She really isn't all that picky, I don't think."

It's strange how strong an epiphany can be. But I needed one more piece of evidence. But I'd need to be… sneaky.

"What's her full name? I'd love to get something engraved for her."

Tanya bit her lip. "Well, she doesn't like her first name. Just about bites my head off if I try to call her 'Isabella.'" She chuckled. "I don't know how mad she'll get at me for telling you, but I'll take my chances. Her full name is Isabella Marie… Oh, fiddlesticks. What's her last name again,"

Isabella Marie… "Swan?"

Tanya looked up at me, surprised. "Yes, actually, that's it. I'm assuming you know her? Or rather, knew her?"

I peeked up at the rest of my family. They all wore the same expression that I was sure was on my face.

"I'm sorry, but I have to go. It's been lovely, Tanya; Everyone."

Tanya looked startled. "Really, Alice! Stay for a bit!"

I got up from the floor and shook my head. "I can show myself out. Thank you though, Eleazer."

When I said that, I ran out the door and into the Porsche.

This was not possible.

Very mixed emotions came upon me. I was first and foremost happy – Bella was alive. I was not only happy for _her_ sake, but for the sake of others. Edward, especially.

Edward.

And then I was angry. Bella was going to marry somebody when Edward was here, or rather at home, wallowing in depression?

No. I wouldn't allow that to happen.

When I reached to turn the key of the ignition, Jasper reached and stopped me. I hadn't even noticed him enter the car.

"Alice, think about what you're doing."

"No, Jasper! Think about what _you're_ doing!"

"What do you mean?"

"Think about it! Bella and Edward were made for each other, and she's marrying somebody else! And think about my vision! Something will go wrong, I can feel it! You want to just let it happen?"

He grabbed my wrists.

"Yes, Darling. That's exactly what I'm going to do. It was her decision to not look for us, Alice."

For once in my life, I wanted to slap him.

"Jasper! Do _not_ blame this on Bella!"

"Who else is there to blame it on?"

"Edward, you prat! Or are you trying to tell me you don't know what happened?"

"I –"

But then he stopped talking.

"You don't know, do you?" I whispered.

Jasper shook his head.

"Oh, Jasper. I'm sorry."

I sat in the car and held his hand.

"Go on, Alice."

I gulped and continued. "Edward left Bella."

"I know that."

I shook my head. "No, Jasper. He _left_ her. He told her he did not want to be with her any more."

His eyes were incredulous. "What?"

"When we had to leave, he stayed behind and took her out into the Hoh forest. Where he said goodbye."

He contemplated that. And after a moment, he brought my hand up to the ignition with his and turned the key.

"We have to tell him. If anybody can do anything about this, it's him." After a moment of thought, he said, "You know, Alice. He might not want to do anything about this. He's stubborn and probably won't listen to reason, and might only want to see her happy."

I sighed. "Don't say that, Jasper. You'll jinx it."

He chuckled.

"Thank you, Jasper. And besides, I can already see something. He'll want to go to at least watch it. Hopefully more like talk to her, at least. I love you."

"And I love you, Alice."

With Jasper at my side, I started the drive back to our home.

**That was fun. I like writing in Alice's perspective. I like to think I'm semishly good at it. But it makes no difference whether or not I like it… Please R&R! I really need to know your opinion on my version of Alice's Point of View. **

**And I really hate switching Point of views. But we need some Cullen action, Man!**


	14. Until the End of Time

**It's really kind of funny. I'm assuming all you guys are like, "GO STOP THE WEDDING!"**

…**this is why I love being an author. There are so many guesses at the plot line. It makes me laugh. Ha-ha. See? I'm laughing. **

**I don't own.**

_**Edward**_

It was just about four in the morning when I heard their voices calling my name. Alice and Jasper.

Immediately I ran out into the hallway to see them coming up the last flight of stairs. My first instinct was to read her mind, which I did. Alice _and_ Jasper were doing their best to keep their minds blank, which led me to believe that this was something important. Obviously it was, otherwise they wouldn't immediately come back to tell me something.

"What is it?"

My voice sounded cold. Dead, even to me.

"Edward!" Alice gasped. "You have to help us-" she said as she grabbed my shirt sleeve. "She's getting married, Edward, you have to stop it!"

I immediately pulled my arm back. "What are you talking about, Alice? Jasper, what is she talking about?"

They were at either side of me in an instant. Jasper was sending strokes of calm through me.

"Jasper! Stop it and tell me what the hell you two are talking about!"

"It's Bella! She's engaged!"

My world came crashing down as I dealt with so many emotions.

I was happier than I had been in… Years. My beautiful, sweet, darling Bella Swan; She was _alive._

Jasper and Alice looked at me tentatively.

And then, as I processed the last bit of the sentence, my world came crashing down on me.

Engaged.

"No… _No! _NO!" I said, pounding the wall and creating a dent that perfectly sculpted my fists.

I suddenly felt so exhausted. I fell to the floor in a crumpled heap and buried my face with my hands.

Alice set her hand on my shoulder and said, "Edward, you can stop it."

I shook my head franticly. "No… I can't. She wouldn't want me, Alice."

"Jasper!" She said, her voice was panicked. I felt the faint echo of happiness engulf me. But it wasn't enough. My Bella was getting married.

_Married._

"Edward, what are you talking about? Of course she'll want you!"

Again, I shook my head.

"Why not?" Alice demanded.

I bit my lip.

"I've searched for her. And I _couldn't_ _find her_. Do you expect me to just show up at her wedding and ask her to take me back?" Before either of them could respond, I said, "Alice, Jasper, she must be relatively happy. She's getting married. Do you think I would take that away from her?"

I breathed in and out, deeply.

Alice swatted Jasper and said, "Told you so. You jinxed it."

No. I wouldn't do that to Bella. I'd already done enough damage in her life. Much too much damage, she deserved anormal, happy human life.

As if Alice possessed my talent, and she could read _my_ mind, she said, "Edward, she's immortal."

Immortal… My beautiful, sweet, darling Bella. I would never see her blush scarlet, or hear her beautiful heart pound in her chest.

But worse than that; it had happened. What I had been trying to prevent. All these years had been in vain. All of my pain, all of her pain.

Worse still, my Bella would be united with another for _eternity._

I started to dry sob, and Alice and Jasper went away.

I couldn't bear the fact that someone, other than myself, was going to be Bella's partner in life, her best friend.

I couldn't think about it.

_Later in the week._

I walked slowly down the stairs and into the living room where Alice and Jasper were sitting on the couch.

Alice's eyes were wide, as were Jaspers. Surprised to see me out of my room, I guessed.

When they looked at me, I joined them on the couch.

"I want to see her," I said. Before Alice or Jasper could interrupt, I added, "But no more than that. She won't see me, or you. You're not even going." I said.

"Edward!" Alice complained. "You can't tell me that you're going to keep me from her."

"That's exactly what I'm going to do, Alice!"

She stood up. When Jasper grabbed her hand, she turned on him. "Jasper! Stop it, will you!?"

Alice turned to me. "And _you!_" Her nostrils flared. "You think you're the only one who misses her?"

I stood up, to fight back. "Of course I don't think that, Alice!" I threw my hands up in exasperation. "You don't think I _know_ how hard it is for the rest of you guys?"

"Exactly, Edward! It's hard for us! It'll be better if you go talk to her! Not just for you, but _everybody!_"

I stared at her, my eyes full of… intense dislike. "How selfish can you get, Alice? Think about how hard it is for 'everybody'. Increase that by a hundredfold and _maybe, _just_ maybe_ will you be able to come close to even standing in the _shadow_ of how much pain _I'm_ in."

My words stung her. I saw it in her eyes, but I was too angry to even care. And then Jasper stood up so as to defend his partner.

"Don't talk to her like that!"

Jasper jumped off of the couch and moved in front of his petite wife.

"I'll talk to anybody anyway I want!" I shouted.

"Edward!"

My head whipped around to see Esme and Carlisle, standing next to Rosalie and Emmett.

"What are you doing here?" It was meant to be a question, but my voice was so saturated with rage that it sounded more like a statement.

"Edward, we came home because-"

"Because _what?_" I demanded, infuriated. "Because you felt sorry for me? You wanted to watch me wallow in self loathing? Congratulations! You've gotten your wish." I yelled.

Nobody moved, except Rosalie. She was up in my face in about two seconds.

"No, you idiot! We came because you're our brother, and we love you! Edward, we only want what's best for you. We want you to be happy!" she screamed at me.

I shook my head and turned around, making my way towards the stairs. "I'll never be happy again."

"Edward, I'm-"

"You're what? _Sorry?_ No, Alice! Just… don't. Okay? I really do not want to hear it. I need to get out. After I take care of some things."

I then ran up to my room and bent besides the bedside table. I pulled out a jewelry box and then ran downstairs.

_I'm sorry, Edward._ Alice's voice occupied my brain.

I looked at her and shook my head, disgusted.

I bolted out the door, running. My destination was just... away. I needed to get _away. _With the wind in my face, I felt a little better.

I finally came to a secluded place in the forest. Immediately I sunk down to the moist earth, and started to dry sob.

_Some time later…_

I couldn't do it any longer.

No more pretending that I was happy.

_No!_ I told myself. _If Bella is happy, I'm happy._

Well, it was worth a shot. Right?

I loved Bella more than I loved life itself, which is why I was letting myself attempt to let her do this. Why I would be standing in the shadows when the vows started to pour out of her beautiful mouth.

With a sigh, I set the Jewelry box down and slowly opened it.

She would never know that I was there. And if all went the way I wanted it to, nobody would go with me. I needed to do this alone. And Bella deserved her happy ending. Who was I to take that away from her?

I began to sift through the collection of baubles that I had accumulated over time.

I knew I was cutting it close. Her wedding was mere weeks away and I had yet to pick out a gift for her. The rest of my family had already purchased their gifts, and I knew I had little time to decide.

For a bit, I contemplated giving her a car – surely she would not be as apposed to the speed now? – but in the end I decided against it. I wanted to give her something more personal.

Which was why I was sifting through my mother's things.

There were necklaces, rings, and many other treasures. Then, out of the corner of my eye, I found it.

The brilliant, heart shaped crystal. In the light of the full moon, it sparkled.

But would she wear it?

Of course not.

But I needed something of mine to be in her possession. Something that was close to me. Hopefully it would be close to her.

I sighed and pocketed it.

"Bella, darling…" I muttered. "I miss you so much sometimes. No, I miss you so much_ all_ the time. I miss the way you laugh, and the way your eyes sparkle. Your beautiful brown eyes…

"I don't know how I can go on without you. I must try, though. You're more important than anything _I_ could want. Of course."

I continued talking to the air as if it were Bella. It felt good, but also painful. My mind was making up replies that I though she might say, but I knew they were just faint echoes.

As I lay down on the moist floor, I closed my eyes. And in doing so, I began to dream of Bella.

Her face would stay there, etched on the insides of my eyelids, until the end of time.

**No, he wasn't really asleep. Just imagining, you know. I feel so bad for poor Edward. It's painful. Ahh. You guys are going to be angry with me. I already know that. I know, it's a little OOC. Okay, maybe a lot OOC. But that's the way that it needs to be for what I'm planning on writing.**

**R&R, ****Por**** Favor. **

**After you do **_**that…**_** GO read the next chapter. **


	15. I Love You, Bella

**Just because this question has been asked at least twice…**

**Does Bella have a power? **Not at the moment, no. I'm still trying to think of something. Help is appreciated!

**If you want the faster happy ending say AYE! And then go read it. (It's a one-shot. Under my stories in my profile.)**

**Last Edward/Cullen POV for a bit. (Did I say that last chapter? If I did... I lied. Sorry.)**

**But if you want the better story, (well… it's better in my opinion, but anyway,) read this one. **

_**Bella**_

The day had finally come. I was getting married to Jacob in no less than five hours.

I had gone over to Angela's house to get ready. It turns out that Angela had inherited a dress from her mother. I felt guilty, taking it. When I had asked her for what was the millionth time, she said, "Bella, if you don't use it I'll pour red food dye all over it. I don't have a need for it!"

It was perfect, of course. A strapless, satin, A-line gown. The side was split and Tulle had been inserted in it with the beaded cluster at the waist. And the veil was absolutely beautiful, it was what Angela had said was a 'standard chapel length' veil.

"Bella, this is so exciting. You look beautiful."

I sat at Angela's vanity as she curled and crimped my hair. I had not seen myself yet as the mirror was temporarily covered with a black garbage bag so as to prevent me from sneaking a peak.

After two hours of pinning, spraying, misting, pulling, and curling, Angela said I was finished. When I reached to pull the cover off, the grabbed my hand and said, "No, silly Bella. Make up first."

I groaned and settled in for a good two more hours of applying, taking off, washing, and anything else that had to do with my face, even though I didn't really need it at all.

And then she finally put the brush down and said, "There. You're beautiful!"

She helped me stand up and we made our way to the full-length body mirror, with my eyes closed.

"Now, I'll count to three, alright? Then you can open your eyes."

I nodded.

"One, Two… Three!"

And when I opened them, I couldn't believe what I saw.

There was a girl standing in front of me in the mirror. No, a _woman._ A beautiful woman. It took me a moment to realize that that woman was me.

My hair was resting on the top of my head in an Updo.

Immediately I turned to Angela and gave her a hug.

"I don't know what to say, Angela. You're amazing."

She only smiled. "Go get married, silly."

And then I looked at the clock. My wedding was in five minutes. In a dash, I strapped on my shoes and then scrambled to recite my vows to Angela. She nodded and smiled.

I had one last nagging question.

"Are you sure I'm doing the right thing? Angela, tell me that I'm doing the right thing."

Angela sat me down right there and said "You're not married yet. You are not trapped. You can call this thing off _right now_. I will be way more willing to lose some money on the ceremony than see my best friend marry the wrong man!"

I nodded. "I'll keep that in mind."

Angela smiled. "You'll do fine, Bella. Breathe."

I opened the back sliding door and slowly walked outside.

Looking around, I saw Tanya's family, but nobody else.

He hadn't come.

A stab of pain went through my body. The faded hole ripped itself open once again, and I gasped for breath, clutching my sides. Even after all of my panic attacks, I still expected him to come. My dreams had been shattered. No Edward.

I knew he wouldn't be there. I _knew_ it. But yet, I still wished for it. I _yearned_ for it with every ounce of muscle I had. But he hadn't.

Looking up, I saw everybody staring at me.

What was I here for, again?

Oh, right… I was going to get married. I immediately stood up straight and composed myself.

_Silly Bella… you knew he wouldn't be here. _I scolded myself.

And then the Wedding March sounded. I walked with my head held high down the isle, not seeing anything.

I barely heard the words that were coming out of the Priests mouth.

But then Jacob turned toward me and said his vows. With a deep breath, he began.

"I, Jacob, ask you, Bella, to be my wife as my friend and my love. On this day I affirm the relationship we have enjoyed, looking to the future to deepen and strengthen it.

"I will be yours in plenty and in want, in sickness and in health, in failure and in triumph. Together we will dream, will stumble but restore each other; we will share all things, serving each other and our fellow humanity.

"I will cherish and respect you, comfort and encourage you, be open with you, and stay with you as long as I-" but then he caught himself. With a smile, he continued. "_We _shall live, freed and bound by our Love."

It was so beautiful. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw that there were tears in his eyes.

And then, it was my turn. And I was terrified. Could I really give up my one last hope? Edward?

When I looked into Jacob's eyes, I had to believe that I could. He was my rock, and it was due to him that I was normal again. That I was even a little bit happy.

I owed him this much, at least. I took a breath, and began.

"The day was dark as night, then you walked through the door. Suddenly the light was bright; Sunshine poured onto the floor."

From that day forward, I felt cherished and adored. From this day forward, our hearts will be as one."

You are a gift. We are joined and can't be undone. Thank you, my Love. My life, my sole mate." It was true, Jacob was my soul mate. But I had something stronger than that.

Key word - _had._ I shook the thought from my mind and said the last line. "My turtle dove."

It was cheesy, but I felt it sort of accurately described my feelings for him. Jacob, my own personal sun sent from above. The rest of it was stretching the truth a bit, but it would have to do.

My voice was saturated with emotion. Happiness? Well… sort of. But mostly… I was aggravated. Trying not to fall apart. It was difficult; my hands were currently joined together with Jacob's.

The Priest's glanced at the two of us and then said, "If anybody should have a reason why these two should not be joined together by the bonds of marriage, speak now, or forever hold your peace."

My one last hope. And then, those words… Those _awful_ words that shattered my dreams.

"You may kiss the bride."

Jacob smiled and leaned in for our first kiss. Our wedding kiss.

To be honest, I don't really remember all that much about it. Not because of what happened before that, but something after.

When we separated, the cheering started. Jacob smiled and whispered, "I love you, Bella."

But that's not why I smiled back.

Edward's voice echoed the same words.

"I love you, Bella."

_**Edward**_

Today my life would take a turn for the worst. My reason for existing was getting married.

I was in Angela Weber's Treetop. That surprised me a bit, that Angela was here. Did she know? Or was she like us?

Looking down on the Scenery, I saw Tanya and her family. There were two little areas for chairs separated by an isle that my Darling Bella would soon be walking down.

All of the gifts were on a lawn table, piled high. Her necklace was in a velvet box, buried under everything. It was my last hope.

I saw Jacob Black standing in a Tuxedo. I did a double take. Black? Why was the _dog _here?

And then it clicked. Nobody else was wearing a Tux. But then again, Black was the only man there besides the Priest's. My Bella was marrying the _dog. _I chuckled, in spite of it all. She would always be able to put the bad things aside.

When Bella clutched stomach, I tensed. Was she having second thoughts? But no, of course not… When the wedding march sounded, she walked forward, looking at nothing.

And then she recited her vows. They were beautiful. But I wondered… What darkness? Clearly that represented pain. Could _I _have caused that pain?

Oh, I hoped not.

I watched her, and it took all that I could not to jump down and scream, "Take me back!" But I couldn't do that. She loved him. I had to believe that. And then, they kissed. I didn't even watch. It was too much for me.

When Jacob pulled away, he whispered to her, "I love you, Bella."

At the same time I did.

She looked startled for just a fraction of a second, but then she smiled.

When the dancing started, I didn't pay any attention. Only when Bella was inside and Jacob over by the very edge of the forest did I call his name.

"Jacob."

His head snapped up and looked around. "Jacob." I said again.

And then he saw me. "Bloodsucker!" he whispered. I rolled my eyes and beckoned him over. Before I could even say anything, he said,

"You're too late. She's my _wife_ now." I cringed. Before he could go on, I stopped him. "I know that, Black. I didn't come to take her away. Only to ask you two favors."

He just stared at me, his eyes tense."One… Take care of her, _please."_

He nodded stiffly. "And two… If you decide to leave…" But he cut me off. "If you think that for one _second_ that I'd do something like that to Bella, you'd better get out of here." I shook my head impatiently. "No, that isn't what I meant. If you imprinted, Jacob... and don't say anything. We both know that it could happen. And if it does, _please_ will you let me know?" Again, he nodded stiffly. I handed him a card with my cell phone number on it. "Just in case I'm not… around, okay?"

"It won't happen, though. I won't imprint. You're wasting your time." Jacob said, his voice carrying more acid with each word.

I laughed bleakly. "Am I? You _will_ die, eventually. Unlike her."

That seemed to pain him. I, on the contrary, was very happy about this new found information. Of course they wouldn't be together forever! He wasn't immortal. The years in which they were together would seem but mere days to me.

I heard the back door shut, and Bella's voice found my ear. How I missed her voice...

Jacob turned to hiss at me, to tell me to leave, but I was already gone.

_Look after my heart. I've left it with you,_ was my last thought.

**Hahahhaa!! He didn't intervene. **

**You'll see the genius ish ness of my ways. Soon enough.**

**Once again, I wasn't very happy with it. Review.**


	16. Blessing

I deleted last alternate chapter

**I deleted last alternate chapter. It was confusing and I'd just end up putting it up as a separate story thing anyway. Sorry.**

**I know you guys are disappointed, okay. Honestly, though? Keep the negativity to yourself (constructive criticism doesn't count as negative-ness.) I don't flipping care if you think something sucks about it. Fact is... it probably does. I'm dealing with a crap load of shizz for school because I have finals that I have to study for (even though I know I'll fail them) coming up within the next two weeks. I've got friends who need me to help them study for some finals that I passed or else **_**they **_**are**__**going to fail. To put it lightly, I'm under too much pressure. Why do I do it, then… I can't stand to see my friends' grades slip. I don't know why, but I guess I'm kind of a school-a-holic. You're gosh dang lucky that I even turn on the stupid laptop to work on a chapter. I'm doing my best here. You want to try to write the story? Hm? **

**I don't own.**

_**Bella**_

"Jake?" I called. "Jake, where'd you go?"

After a moment he came trudging out of the forest, looking angry about something. "What's wrong?" I asked him. He just shook his head and looked around. "Where'd everybody go?"

"Tanya and her family had to go back for business, and Angela's taking the things over to our house."

After we were at home, I pointed to the dangerously high pile of presents. "You want to tackle the pile of gifts?" I suggested darkly. He chuckled - as he knew how much I hated money being spent on me – and led the way.

In the first couple of minutes, I had unwrapped new bags, some ties, and a pair of heels that I wouldn't wear. Even as a vampire, I was still just a little bit of a klutz. Jacob took a photo album out from its package. Thank goodness we had put disposable cameras out on the tables that were full of pictures to fill it with.

"You know what I don't understand, though?" I asked Jacob. "What's that?" he replied.

"There are so many gifts here. We're not even half way done opening them, and there were only about five people there. Tanya wouldn't spend that much money on me… She knows I'd have a fit."

Jacob pulled his brow together. "Yeah… Doesn't really make sense… But enjoy it, Bells. Be happy. Obviously there's someone out there who's glad we're together."

He tossed the wrapping paper to the side. "Make sure you keep track of all the cards so we can write 'thank-you's," I reminded him and continued to unwrap things that I wouldn't use. "Oh, well…" I sighed. "We live in a golden age. EBay is a magical thing," I said sagely. He chuckled and nodded.

In the center of the table, I saw a velvet necklace box. It was long and black. Curious, I picked it up and slowly removed the lid.

Inside, there was one of – no… _the most_ beautiful necklace that I have ever seen. The chain was thin and made of silver. On it was a Swarovski heart-shaped crystal. The note inside it only said, "To Bella," and I didn't recognize the handwriting. Immediately, though, I removed it carefully out of the box and held it up to the light, and it sent rainbows dancing across my dress.

Carefully, I unclipped the necklace and put it on. It fit perfectly around my neck. And though I recognized that it was quite expensive, I wouldn't have traded it for the world. I could not explain the connection I felt to the necklace… But it was strong.

"Hey, Bella?" Jake called. "I've got a… Who's that one from?" He said abruptly, noticing the necklace.

I looked at him and shrugged. "They didn't leave a name."

Jake grumbled about something for a moment or two and then said, "I've got a surprise for you!"

"What is it? Did you spend lots of money? So help me, Jake, if you did…" I threatened jokingly. He laughed and then said, "Somebody's at the door."

"What does that have to do with anything?"

He just waved me to the door, where somebody was still knocking. "Open it." Jake said. "Open your present."

Present..?

I reached to open the door, and Ms. Landis from Shea Adoption Centre stood there with a little bundle in her arms and a basket on the floor.

"Oh my gosh… You're letting us have her?" I shouted. Ms. Landis only laughed and nodded her head. She passed little Adaline to me. I could feel how warm she was. The way her chocolate brown hair wisped about her face made her so beautiful. The one thing I noticed was her Green eyes. They looked up at my face, searching it curiously. And her heartbeat; I could hear and feel it. It was the most beautiful thing in the world. "Congratulations, hon."

"Thank you, Ms. Landis. Won't you come in? I asked her.

"As a matter of fact, I will. There are some things that I've got for you. And please," she added, "Call me Rachel."

As I continued to stare into Adaline's eyes, I led Rachel to the living room. "Make yourself comfortable," I muttered. If I could cry, I would be bawling my eyes out.

"I've supplied some of the necessities for you… Let's see what we've got." She began to sift through her basket and pulled out a large container of formula. "This is what she usually eats… And make sure not to put any soft cereals in the bottle. It'll make her sleep longer than she already does."

Jacob snorted. "Why's that a bad thing?"

"Because she needs to eat every three or four hours to get the nutrients she needs… And speaking of soft cereal, don't put her on baby food until she can sit up on her own, or she's five months old. Six would be better, but I know some parents can't wait." She smiled.

"We've put diapers in here… She's pretty tiny, as you know, so she wears a size one diaper. Make sure you pay attention to it. If she ever goes longer than necessary without a diaper change, she'll start to fuss. Just in case, we have some baby rash ointment."

I had a question. "Rachel, why is Adaline so small?"

"Hm? Oh… she was born prematurely, and was put on an incubator."

"Will that mess up her health at all?" Jacob asked beside me.

"Well, it could. You may want to take her to a pediatrician for a check up here and there." Pulling out a package, she said, "And we've brought a hygiene kit. It's got nail clippers, a hairbrush with extra soft bristles, and a toothbrush for when she gets her teeth… Because she was a preemie, she'll start teething later than usual. Plus some orajel… Teething hurts and it'll make her fuss less."

"We've got things for her to play with… Teething toys, rattles, and things like that. There are a couple of baby blankets, burp rags, clothes, bottles… I do believe that that's everything! Do you two have any questions?"

"How often are we to burp her?"

"Just about every three or four ounces that she drinks. Just put her over your shoulder and gently pat her back. Don't get discouraged, it could take a while." She glanced at her watch and said, "Oh, drat. I have to be going now, there's a couple that want to meet with an older child. If you have any more questions, there's a baby handbook that tells you the proper position of nursing her, burping her, and just about anything else you can imagine. If that doesn't cover it, then give us a call."

Immediately I got up and showed her to the door. She began to walk down the driveway. Before she could make it very far, though, I called her back. "Wait!"

"Yes?"

"Is… Is that all?"

"What do you mean?"

"Is she really ours now?"

Rachel nodded. "Jacob took care of everything. But either myself or another employee at Shea will be coming by to check on you. Adoption is difficult, and not for everybody."

"Thank you, Rachel. Thank you so much."

"You're so welcome, Bella."

"Have a good day," I said as I turned to go back into the house. I walked back into the house and went to the couch, to stare at Adaline.

"Our baby is beautiful, Bells," Jake whispered in my ear. I nodded. "Would you like to hold her?" He put his arms out eagerly. As I set her in them I said, "I'm going to go change. Watch her head, okay?"

Without waiting for an answer I ran into my room and shut the door. Sitting on my bed, I sighed and reached back to unzip my dress. Being the flexible vampire that I was, it came off easily. I quickly put it in the dress bag and hung it up. Going over to my dresser I picked out a pair of shorts and a regular T Shirt and put them on in a flash. After that, I sat on my bed to think.

I had Adaline now. My beautiful baby girl… she was mine. Now I was glad to be _Mrs. Black._ I wrinkled my nose; maybe Jacob would let me keep going as Ms. Swan. '_Mrs.'_ made me sound old.

I decided that it was time to work on my collage classes. I pulled out the computer and turned it on. I was surprised at how far I had gotten – I only needed to complete two more semesters worth of classes before I could get my degree.

But what would I do? I needed to decide on a career, and quickly. With that thought in mind, I started to work on my assignments. It was going pretty well, too, until I heard Adaline start to whimper ever so quietly.

I slammed the screen of the laptop down onto the keyboard and ran to the living room. "What's wrong with her?" I hissed.

Jacob looked up, startled. "Nothing!"

I walked over to Adaline and looked over her. She was asleep. "Just a dream, I suppose… Do you want me to take her and lie her down?"

Reluctantly, he held her out to me as he yawned. "Yeah… I'm pretty tired. D'you mind if I go lie down for a bit? I'd take her with me, but I don't want to squish her." He chuckled.

I shrugged. "Of course. But can you bring me the computer?"

"Sure thing, Bells," he yawned.

I carefully put Adaline down on the couch and spread a blanked over the loveseat. I picked her tiny, fragile body on the couch and covered her up again. I knew how cold she must have been, after being in Jacob's arms and then mine. I continued to gaze down on my daughter.

The two words sounded beautiful together. _My Daughter_.

Eventually, she woke. When she did, I picked her up and she began to try and grab at my necklace. I laughed, and said, "This is mummy's heart, darling. Let's go get you a rattle."

I put her down on the blanket and ran to get her a rattle. She started to shake it, her little fists balled up. "You are so adorable, Adaline."

I continued to play with her for the rest of the night until she wanted a bottle. Quickly I heated one up and then proceeded to rock her to sleep in my arms.

She was so precious… My beautiful, baby girl. I wondered what on earth I did to deserve such a beautiful blessing.


	17. Thirteen Years

**AHH!!**

**Scream with me! I scored second highest in my class on an important test! AHH!!**

**Ha. And I just wanted to say… "You guys are all made of awesome!" (I would credit this… but I can't remember where I found it. Darn.) Thank you for understanding that life is difficult. **

**Austin – Blake Shelton (sorry. I just had to write it down before I forgot. Has nothing to do with the chapter.) **

_**Flashbacks**_** are in italics.**

**I don't own.**

* * *

It's been thirteen years since I said "I Do." _**(**_**I know Edward wouldn't stay away for thirteen years. That's part of another twist ish like thing)**

Most of the time, I was happy. Most of the time, it was because of Adaline. She was an amazing child who I loved more than anything in the world.

I was currently beside her on top of the comforter on her bed, reading aloud from Harry Potter. It wasn't until she started to gently snore that I realized she was asleep.

When I was watching her sleep, my thoughts drifted.

_When Rachel came from Shea to check on us, she was absolutely amazed with the progress we had made at first. She called me "Mama," and did not like it when she got held by anybody other than me. She tolerated Jacob… It was kind of hilarious, actually. He would pick her up and she would make a point of finding me and pointing at me. But instead of whining, she just sucked on her fist. She was still eating a little bit of baby food, although I wasn't sure that was because she necessarily liked to eat it. She had begun to create art by throwing it across the kitchen wall. _

_Rachel had come over for the two month interview. "It's very important that Adaline has both a mother and father figure. So is everything doing alright?"_

_I hesitated before answering. "For the most part…"_

"And what does that mean, exactly?"

"_Well, it isn't as if we're going to run off and divorce each other. But sometimes I get… moody. Jacob usually talks me out of it, though."_

_She nodded. "And I'm sorry to be asking you this, Bella… but it's on the required questionnaire. The thing doesn't really pay much mind to personal boundaries or anything like that. But anyway… Is Adaline going to have a sibling in the future?"_

_Immediately I shook my head. "No, Rachel… she won't. That's why we adopted, you know. It's very difficult for me to carry a child." Not to mention impossible. _

"_And I understand that, Bella… I'm sorry. But miracles happen, you know…" she trailed off, uncomfortable._

_And I had to laugh. "Rachel! This might sound a little ridiculous, but mine and Jacob's sex life is… non existent."_

"_Oh!" she said, startled. "Oh… right."_

She looked utterly confused so I felt compelled to explain.

"_Jacob and I don't really love each other like that. Our relationship usually balances on the fine line of 'Romantic' and 'Family,' usually leaning against the Family bit. One of – no… the major influences in my decision to marry him was Adaline. I probably wouldn't have if I didn't know about her."_

Adaline… what a blessing she was for me. I moved a stray piece of hair from her face as I watched her sleep, her face content. She was fourteen years old now… How the time went by!

I remember her first word, the night she slept all the way through it, the date and time she started walking, when she sat up, her first day of kindergarten, first crushes, everything.

To an onlooker, I was like her older sister.

I remember the day that I told her about the mythological world. She was twelve and it was Halloween. We were at the local Wal-Mart and she was looking at a vampire costume.

"_Mummy, I want this one!"_

_I had quickly removed it from her hands and placed it back on the rack. "No, Addie."_

"_Please?" I remember the way her bottom lip stuck out, trembling.  
_

"_Not today, Adaline. Please."_

"_Why not? Mom, there's going to be a Halloween dance, everybody is going to be there!"_

"_I'm sorry about that, Addie, but it's something you'll have to learn to live with."_

"_But tell me why!"_

_I sighed, and she tapped her foot impatiently._

"_Come on, Mom. It isn't like I don't have reason to wonder; because you haven't given me a good enough reason yet."_

I sighed. "At home, alright?"

_Adaline's eyes grew bigger. "You promise?"_

"_I promise."_

_I did fulfill my promise. I told her. I told her about Vampires, Werewolves, the whole nine yards. I explained about Phasing, and how that was why I took special care not to make Jacob angry. "That's why he goes out every week. To phase and take out his frustration." I had lied. He went to talk to Sam and the rest of the pack. Adaline didn't know about that… I didn't think she was ready yet. Anyway, she took it very well. It was odd… Who wouldn't freak out when they got told that their mom was a vampire and dad was a werewolf?_

_Oh no, not my Adaline. I answered all of her questions, even one that I shouldn't have._

"_So is that why you both still look so young?"_

_I nodded. "Yes, darling. That's why. It's because in a vampire, all of our organs stop working and our body's cells stop reproducing. Everything just… stops."_

"_You stop being able to reproduce?"_

_Without thinking about it, I said "Yes."_

"_So I'm adopted, right?"_

_Oh shoot._

"_Yes."_

_After a moment of quiet, I said, "Addie, this was something that I wanted you to learn later in life. I'm so sorry, Darling."_

_I took her in my arms and gave her a kiss on the cheek._

"_It's alright, Mom. I'm okay. See?"_

_As I looked at her face, she had no tears._

"_But I do have one question, though…"_

"_What's that, Darling?"_

_When she answered, her voice broke._

"_Why did they give me up?"_

"_I don't know, darling. I really don't know. You are the best daughter anybody could ever ask for. I wouldn't trade you for the world. It was a closed adoption."_

"…_Oh."_

"_Do you want me to find out? I can find out for you, darling, I can."_

_She just shook her head. "No… I don't want to know. "_

"_Okay, baby. Tell me if you change your mind. I love you," I said as I walked out of her bedroom._

_Adaline was not one to express emotions. At all. But I knew her better than to just think that everything was alright, so I picked up the telephone._

"_This is Bella Black, can I talk to Rachel Landis please?"  
_

_I sat there for a moment until she came onto the other end._

"_Bella! Is anything wrong?"_

"_No, Rachel. Everything's fine. Well… No, I won't say that. It's Addie."_

"_Adaline? What's the matter with her?"_

"_She wants to know who her biological parents are."_

_Silence._

"_Bella, I don't think I can-"_

"_Please, Rachel? This is important to her. I want to be able to give her everything in the world."_

_She whispered. "Bella, I have her file here. I can't bring it by, that would cause suspicions… But I'll make a copy of it and mail it to you, alright?"_

"_Thank you, Rachel." My voice was ardent with gratitude._

"_Should be there in a couple of days."_

_And then I heard the click of the line._

_I put the phone away and listened. I could hear Adaline in her bedroom, crying._

That sound would torture me for the rest of my life. My darling was crying, and it would bee a bit before I would be able to do anything.

_I had received the file. I was reading it, memorizing. It was very short; all it had in it was her parents names and Date of Death and birth certificate. _

_Her parents' names were Jenna (DOD: 3/17/1994) and Ash (DOD: U/A) Michaels. _

_So her biological mother had died. Died giving birth to her._

_According to the U/A, I assumed that Ash Michaels was still alive. How could he leave his daughter like that?_

_I hated him immediately. Adaline was moping around the house and anybody who caused that deserved to be punished._

_I would find him one day and tell him about her. How beautiful, smart, kind, and loving she was._

_And how cruel and undeserving _he_ was._

_I threw the file on the floor, beyond frustrated, and Adaline came out in a night dress. _

"_Mom… I think I want to know now."_

_I ran to her side immediately._

"_Your parent's names were Jenna and Ash Michaels."_

_At this point she shook her head._

"_What is it, darling?"_

"_You said 'Your parents.' You and Dad are my parents."_

_I smiled at her and continued._

"_Jenna died shortly after giving birth to you. Ash is still somewhere out there, to my knowledge."_

_I felt her hands hug me and I returned it._

"_He's still alive?"_

_I nodded. "Yes, darling. He is."_

_She was quiet. I led her to the rocking chair and putting her on my lap I began to rock her back and forth._

_Just like when she was little._

When she was little… time went by so very quickly.

She began to shiver, so I pulled the heavy blanket over her, set the book on her bedside table, and left the room.

* * *

**M'kay. Tell me what you think.**

**Sorry if it seems too fast… But I'm guessing the story is only going to last a maximum of seven or eight chapters until I start the sequel, which I'm excited for.**

**Hey I had a brilliant Idea. What if we could get one hundred reviews? It would make me happy.**


	18. Happy Birthday

**Hola guys! Thanks for reviewing, I got 102! **

**So anyway I just got Microsoft Word 2007 and I used to have Word '03 and there are lots of different buttons and I'm afraid to screw it up... Ha-ha. (It even _highlights_ a pretty color. I'm amazed.)**

**I don't own the rights to anything mentioned in this chapter. Just my plot.**

* * *

_Recap - She began to shiver, so I pulled the heavy blanket over her, set the book on her bedside table, and left the room._

When I got to the living room, Jacob was sitting on the couch. He wasn't reading the paper or eating – just sitting.

"Hey, Jake," I said as I slid next to him.

"Hey Bella…" he yawned.

"So I just got finished reading to Adaline."

"Yeah?"

I nodded. "She seems to like it alright…"

"That's good."

"Yeah. Hopefully it'll help like her counselor said it would."f

Adaline had been going through a hard time. Ever since she found out that her biological parent had abandoned her, she was a little depressed. I had prodded her into a counseling program at the school and she had been coming home in a little bit of a better mood. Her counselor had called me and said that it would be best if we bonded with her so that she feels like she's wanted which lead me to wonder… does she think we don't want her? That was ridiculous. Absolutely ridiculous.

Jacob snorted, "Right."

"What? You, the last time I checked, are not a doctor."

"I know that. But how is reading 'Harry Potter' supposed to help her stop sulking over her idiot biological dad?"

I rolled my eyes. "It's not the book in itself, Jacob. It's the whole daddy daughter bonding relationship concept."

Jacob grumbled something under his breath. But I caught it.

"Well, maybe it would work if you actually read it to her! You _are_ her father, after all. You need to help her through this, too."

"Yeah, I know, Bells. And I try. But I was swamped at work today and I had to get a little bit of sleep," he said, yawning.

I sighed. "I know. Just make sure you get enough, so you can be firing on all pistons tomorrow at work. I need you to finish up there so you can get _here._ And please, _don't be late._"

He smiled. "Have I ever been late to my daughters Birthday Party?"

"No… But you haven't had a demanding job any of those times."

"True… But I promise, I _will_ be there," he said, kissing my cheek. He yawned again, and I looked at his eyes. "You have purple rings, Jacob. Go to sleep, alright?"

He slowly stood up. "That might be a good idea…"

"Yeah. Night, I love you."

"Love you, too," he said as he went to our bedroom.

My daughter was turning fifteen years old tomorrow. Fifteen! It made me feel so… _old._ I shuddered. She absolutely hated her birthday, for reasons unbeknownst to me. And so every year, to sort of… tease her about it, just a little, I would throw her a birthday party. It was never anything too big, because I didn't want to go all Alice Crazy on her. I knew how much that would have bothered me, had I been in her situation.

But as I couldn't do anything about it at the momenft, I decided to pick up _Gone with the Wind._ This one was not so abused as _Wurthing__ Heights__, _but the spine was still pretty flexible. The two books were completely different, and as I read, I had no idea why I liked it. Scarlett's a girl who only wants what she can't have. Always plotting and trying to get her man, Ashley, whom in the end she doesn't even love! But there was just something about it… I shook my head.

I was just at the part where she and Rhett are talking about their "Mutual Grandchildren" when I heard Adaline's radio alarm, the chorus to FM Static's _Tonight._

_Tonight I've fallen and I can't get up  
I need your loving hands to come and pick me up  
And every night I miss you  
I can just look up  
And know the stars are  
Holding you, holding you, holding you  
Tonight._

Slowly I got up to go wake her up, knowing that she would just hit the snooze button on her alarm clock. But to my surprise, when I got in there, Jacob was waking her up.

I slowly retreated back into the kitchen to start making breakfast. Looking in the cupboards, I found that we were about finished with the pancake mix. "Cold pizza it is, then…" I muttered and set last night's box on the table.

In about twenty minutes Jacob and Adaline were at the table. "Delicious, Mom," Adaline said, grinning. "Just eat, Darling," I replied, rolling my eyes.

When they were finished, I all but pushed them out the door. Adaline was utterly confused and Jacob had a huge grin on his face. "I'll see you later, Bella," he said as he kissed me on the cheek.

"But Dad-"

"Come on, Adaline! Let's get you to school!" Jacob's voice sounded ridiculously enthusiastic, and I could practically _hear_ Adaline rolling her eyes as she said, "Oh, joy… school."

"Bye, Darlings! I'll see you later today!" I shouted as I slammed the door. Phew… she was gone. Now I could get the house decorated. True, her birthday was not for another day, which was why she was so confused, I'd be willing to bet.

I chuckled as I pulled out the sacks of decorations from under Jacob's bed. I then called Angela and she came over to help me prepare everything. When we were finished, the house was covered in streamers, balloons, confetti, you name it.

We wrapped all of her gifts and placed them on the coffee table in the living room. Her birthday cake was on the kitchen table with two cups – one for Adaline, one for Jacob.

The time finally came – it was two thirty. Jacob was supposed to be on his way home, and so I called just to make sure. But strange… I got his answering machine. I shrugged it off and decided that I would call later.

But he still didn't answer. Now I was getting a little bit worried about him – it was almost three and he wasn't home yet.

But I didn't have any more time to think about it as I heard the _crunch_ of the pebbles under Adaline's feet. Angela heard it, too, so at the same exact moment we both hid. Both of us, coincidentally, decided on hiding behind the couch that faced the front door.

The lights were off and the door was locked – everything was in place. I heard her try the door and then get frustrated because she had to go all the way into the bottom of her bag to get her key. _"Dangit, where is it…"_

Eventually she got the door open. When the lights were off, she said, "Hello..? Is anybody here?" she flicked the lights on, and we jumped out from behind our hiding spot. "Surprise!"

"Aagh!" she yelled, definitely surprised. I could have sworn she jumped about ten feet in the air. She dropped her bag and then said, once again, "Aagh! Mom, what did you do?"

"What does it look like, silly? I threw you a party!"

"Well, yeah, I can see that!" She started to laugh. "Mom, you shouldn't have!" she said as she stepped forward towards me to give me a hug. "Thanks," she said, knowing Angela would hear her. "But seriously... You shouldn't have," she said, glaring at me. I just laughed and said, "You're welcome!"

"Hey… Mom?" she asked me after looking around a bit.

"Yeah, baby?"

"Where's Dad?" she asked me, looking confused.

"Oh, he got held up at work. I promise he'll be home soon." I was really starting to get worried about him_._ He promised he'd be here. And on time, too. He wasn't answering his phone either...

"Now… what'll it be? Presents or cake?" I asked, trying to lighten the mood.

"Hm… Cake! I'm hungry."

"Okie doke. I made a white cake this year… I don't know about you, but I thought chocolate was getting a bit old." I made a face, and she laughed.

"We've only had it what… ninety percent of my birthdays?"

"Just about!"

Angela took the lighter from me and began to light the candles, putting fifteen on them.

When they were lit, Angela and I began to sing.

"Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday dear Addie-"

But before we could finish, we got interrupted by the door opening.

"Happy Birthday to you!" sang an off-key Jacob. I laughed, but then quickly looked at him. No cuts, no scars, no scratches, he didn't look tired... Okay, now I could be angry at him for being late.

"Hey, Dad!" Adaline chirped, jumping up from the table. Jacob went and hugged her, picking her up off of the floor. "Happy birthday, kiddo."

I sliced the cake and handed Jacob and Adaline a slice with some milk. "Eat up!" I said. And while they ate, I asked Adaline how her day was today.

"Fine, I guess. Everyone told me 'Happy Early Birthday,'" she said. "So do I get my presents now?"

I laughed. "Yes, Adaline. You can have your presents now," I said as I turned towards Angela. She handed me one which, in turn, was handed to Adaline.

"So small..?" she said, turning the package over in her hands. "_Dare_ I hope that you're finally deciding that birthdays are just plain annoying and you don't want to spend money on such trifle things?"

I shook my head. "No, sorry dear. And I think the word you're looking for is 'trite,'" I said as she rolled her eyes. "Whatever." She proceeded to rip off the paper and then her eyes went wide.

"You didn't!" she gasped. I laughed and said, "I did."

"Mom! You got me a Zune!"

She was pleased; it was easy to see in her eyes. But she poorly tried to hide it.

"You're welcome," I laughed.

She continued to open the rest of her things. When she, finally, was finished half an hour later, she sighefd. "Thanks for all of it, mom."

"Was there something else you wanted, hon?"

Adaline suddenly became fascinated with her thumbs, something she did when she got nervous.

"Darling...?"

She sighed. "Well, I'd been thinking, Mom, about something."

"About what?" I hedged.

"Well, I'd been thinking about how you're a Vampire. And I guess I was thinking that, for my birthday, you know, that you might change me. I want to be like you. For my birthday." She looked up at me from under her bangs tentatively.

In a split second, I was so..._ happy._ And then I was sad, and then angry and happy all at one time, all in a split second. But that was only for a split second.

My thoughts were interrupted by Jacob shouting, "NO!"

And then, he grabbed onto the kitchen table and started to shake violently, sending a crack running down it.

Immediately I threw Adaline over my shoulder. "Angela! Get out of here!" I screamed and then ran out the door. I made sure that she was outside before I took off, not looking back.

* * *

**Ooh. And the plot thickens.**

**Read and Review. **


	19. Aurora Borealis

**Just because I was pretty darn pleased with Ten reviews, I let you guys have this one. **

**I should hold them longer… Maybe I'd get more reviews.**

**I Don't Own.**_**Adaline **_

* * *

All I had said was that I wanted to be like my mother for the rest of eternity. Was that such a big deal?

Apparently so.

I sat in the corner of Angela's living room, watching her and Mom run around. Every time I had tried to say something, they just "SHH!"d me. It scared the crap out of me. You'd be scared too, if your dad was on the verge of… well, whatever he was doing, it wasn't good, and your mom would refuse to answer any of your questions. And then, out of no where, I heard a wolf howl. And apparently, this was what Ang and Mom were waiting for.

"I'll take her to Tanya's house," Mom said abruptly.

"Alaska? Bella, she'll-"

"Yes, _Alaska._ I've got my card so I can pick her up some decent clothes."

"If that's what you want to do…"

"It is, Ang. It really is. I'll be back in like four days. A week tops."

She hugged Angela and then turned towards me. "Come on, Darling."

I slowly stood up and walked towards my mother's outstretched arms. She swallowed me in a hug. Over my shoulder, she spoke to Angela. "Can I borrow your car?"

"Of course."

"Come on, Darling. We have a plane to catch."

"A plane? Mom-"

"Later, honey. I'll explain it all later. Now, go out into the car and I'll meet you there."

She all but shoved me out the front door. I sighed and walked across the lawn to the car and got in. I reached over to turn the key in the ignition. A second later, Mom was in the drivers seat, pulling out of the drive way. She was silent, and I was silent. But I needed to talk to her.

"Mom?" I said hesitantly.

"Yes, Darling?"

"What happened? To Dad, I mean?"

She hesitated. "I suppose I should start at the beginning. You know he's a werewolf."

I nodded.

"And remember how I told you about Phasing?" She looked at me out of her rear-view mirror. "That's what was happening."

"He phased?"

She hesitated. "Well, he was definitely getting there."

"But he had to be really… _angry,_ though. Right?"

Again, she nodded.

"I'm sorry, mommy," I muttered under my breath. She, of course, heard me. "Adaline Renee! Don't let yourself _ever_ think that this was your fault. You mustn't. It isn't, darling. I promise."

"But, Mom!"

"Your father should have handled that better. He shouldn't have... gotten so mad. It isn't your fault, Adaline. He wasn't in control."

I only shook my head.

"He hasn't ever done that before," I whimpered. I could feel my eyes start to leak. I couldn't push the feeling that I had caused this away from my mind.

I wasn't watching the road and before I knew it, Mom was pulling into some parking lot.

"Sweetie, I'm going to run and get you a couple things. It's pretty cold in Alaska."

I nodded. "Right."

I put my head down on the seat and felt the tears trickle down my face.

It felt like seconds later that Mom was gently shaking me awake. "Darling, we're at the airport. Come on."

It was like I was watching everything that happened through slow motion. While we were waiting for a flight, Mom had to practically force feed me a sub sandwich. And then after what felt like hours, I was on a plane. Thankfully she had gotten us two first class seats, which gave me more room to spread out and fall asleep.

When I woke again, Mom said that we were getting ready to land somewhere in Seattle so that people could get off and on to stretch their legs. She asked me if I wanted to, and I shook my head.

"Where are we going..?" I slurred. I was still half asleep.

"To Tanya's family. They live in Juneau, and she's going to let the both of us stay there while Dad cools off."

"Oh…"

"Yes."

"Is he going to be mad?"

She laughed. "Well, I don't really know. I'll call him before hand, though, so he isn't caught off guard."

"He won't… hurt you, will he?"

"No, darling. He won't. You know, actually, I'd like to see him try." She chuckled. "Now go to sleep, honey. Please."

Willingly, I did as she asked. When I woke again, Mom had thrust a heavy jacket at me and told me to put it on. And I was glad she did, as when I stepped outside, it freezing cold. Mom hustled me inside and called a cab that would take us to Tanya's house.

I fell asleep again in the cab.

When I woke up again, I was in a room. There was a light leaking out through the bottom of the curtain, although I didn't know if that meant that it was daytime.

Mom was sitting on the edge of the bed; I got up and crawled to her side.

"Hey."

"About time you woke up. I was beginning to think that you went into a coma. So are you hungry? I brought you some cereal. Care if I turn on the light?"

"Please."

"Watch your eyes."

I put my hands to my eyes as she turned the lights on. I blinked a couple times and looked around, taking in my surroundings. The walls were white, bare. There were two doors, one open and revealing a bathroom. On the wall, there was a dresser and a full length body mirror. She set a tray on the bed and said, "What will it be… Cheerios, Honey Bunches of Oats, Lucky Charms…"

"Honey Bunches of Oats, please."

She handed me a bowl and a spoon. I took a bite, and then as it hit my stomach, I noticed that I was starving.

"So…"

"So, what?"

"So… have you talked to Dad yet?"

She nodded.

"…And?"

"And he wants you to call him."

I held my hand out for the phone and she gave it to me. I dialed the number and he picked up on the first ring.

"Bella?"

"No, Dad."

"Adaline. Oh, my gosh. Babe, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to do that. I just… I lost it. Sometimes I just… _loose_ it, ya know?"

"Yeah."

"Addie, I'm sorry…"

"Dad, that's alright. It was my own stupid fault anyway."

"No, baby… It wasn't. I swear, it wasn't your fault. It's _all_ me."

"How do you work that one out?"

"I shouldn't have let it bother me. And I had some other stuff on my mind. Stuff that I shouldn't have held onto… I guess, stuff that I knew was going to happen. But I didn't want it to happen, so I got upset… and I exploded, I guess."

"Yeah… I miss you."

"Me too, hon. Can I talk to Mom?"

I held the phone to Mom.

"Hey, Jake… Well, the next flight leaves in a few hours. But I was thinking that she should stay here for a bit. Just to get to know everybody… Jake, I want her to know my past. Please? And maybe I'll take her shopping or something. Yeah. Girl fun," she winked at me and I grinned. We both knew that we probably wouldn't spend our time shopping. "Okay, love you. Talk to you later, bye," she said as she shut the phone.

"So… You ready to meet the Denali clan?"

I put the spoon into the empty bowl. "Sure, I guess..."

"Okay. So there's Tanya, of course, and her sisters Katie and Irina; plus Carmen and Eleazer."

I nodded my head like I remembered anything she had just said, "Right."

"Get ready. I'll take you out there."

I just pulled on some sweat pants and followed Mom out the door and into the sitting room. And there they were, standing. They looked like they belonged on the cover of a magazine, but they were standing, no less. Sheepishly, I waved. "Hello."

At first, nobody smiled. They hated me. I immediately turned around and muttered, "Let's go." But Mom grabbed my shoulders and turned me around. "Everybody, this is Adaline," she said, her voice firm.

And then almost immediately everybody's face broke out into a smile. "Hello, Adaline," they all said in unison. I didn't like it. It wasn't easy to explain my discomfort, but it was certainly there. You'd be uncomfortable, too, if they were giving you the cold shoulder one minute and the next they were smiling and being all happy-go-lucky.

The rest of the day passed, and nothing much happened. I talked to Irina and Kate and Tanya for a bit, but somehow I got the gist that they weren't all that interested in what I had to say. And after that I had retreated back to the bedroom. Mom came in after a while and shut the door. She ran her fingers through her hair, the way she did when she was stressed.

I couldn't help it, but a grin broke out on my face.

"I forgot how… for lack of a better word, _difficult_ they could be. I'm sorry."

"That's alright. Just so long as you're going through the same stuff that I am," I sighed dramatically. "But we're even now."

"So… just as long as we're… _even,_ you want to go get a hotel or something?"

A hotel! That brightened my mood. "Please. But will we like… offend them? Or something?" I asked.

"No, I think not. They'll be relieved."

"Well," I said as I got off of the bed, "what are we waiting for then?"

_Twenty Minutes Later _

"_Finally!" _I said as I collapsed in the back of the cab. "So where are we staying?"

"Anywhere but _there," _Mom said. "But first… you want to go sight-seeing?"

"Yeah!"

So we basically spent the day in a few museums, and outside. I won't bore you with the details, but I _will_ say that I loved it.

Mom poked my shoulder, waking me, and said, "Look over there." I turned my neck over to where she was pointing and we saw the Aurora Borealis.

"They're so _pretty."_ I muttered. "Beautiful."

"Yes, Darling."

I nodded off, despite all my attempts to stay awake so I could watch the northern lights with Mom. Darn … I fell asleep. Well, that was disappointing. And not just because of the lights. I was watching them with _Mom._ And honestly, between school and stuff, we hadn't gotten much of a chance to do anything with each other. And now here I was, watching the Aurora Borealis, with my Mom.

With my best friend.

And then, while I was asleep, I was thinking. Or, I guess you could call it dreaming. And anyway, I was dreaming about how lucky I was to be here with her.

My birthday party came to my mind, and I remembered what I had said that had caused all of this. _"__Well, I'd been thinking about how you're a Vampire. And I guess I was thinking that, for my birthday, you know, that you might change me. I want to be like you. For my birthday."_

Even now, I definitely still wanted to be like my mom. That wouldn't change.

* * *

**Mary has some questions.**

**So were you happy with it? Tell me. **

**Have any of you read Maximum Ride? I got Angel Experiment, School's Out Forever, and Saving the World and Other Extreme Sports, from my aunt. Are they any good?**

**Who thinks David Archuleta is so going to kick butt on Wednesday? (American Idol. For all of you out of nation people.) And no offence to you guys who like Cook. He's good, too, but Archuleta is just made of amazing.**

**(You really don't have to answer any of my questions. Just that first one, please.)**


	20. A Picnic

I don't own

**This is probably like the… second thing you guys have been waiting for.**

**I don't own.**

_** Bella **_

"So Mom..?"

I looked up from the road, startled. "Yes, Darling?"

She opened her mouth as if to say something, but then shut it again. When I looked at her expectantly, she sighed and said, "When are we getting home?"

I checked my watch and said, "Maybe in fifteen minutes or so."

"…Oh."

Adaline started to fiddle with her thumbs, so I knew there was something else. "And?"

"Well, I was just kind of wondering… What was with Tanya and her clan?"

I snorted and said, "They're just full of themselves; that's all."

"What does that mean?"

"You're human, Darling." When I said that, I winced. It reminded me of Rosalie, and how she hated me because of my human-ness. Well, there was no need for that loathing now. Not that it would even matter. "And they, being who they are, think you – and all humans, actually – are under them," I scoffed. But after a minute of consideration, I added, "Well… Carmen, Kate and Irina do, anyway."

"But Tanya and Eleazer?"

"Tanya doesn't really go out of her way to oppose her sisters. And as for Eleazer, well… he hates to say anything that would contradict Carmen."

"Well, that's stupid."

I chuckled. "Yeah, it is. Don't let it get to you."

"I'll try not to."

She was silent for the rest of the drive, which lasted about five minutes. (Due to my fast driving, we were ahead of schedule.) I pulled into the silent driveway and shut the car off. "You can go on inside – I'll get everything else."

She stifled a yawn. "No, that's alright. I'll help you."

I popped the trunk and then handed her one of the suitcases. "You got this one?" I asked. She nodded. I picked up the second one and walked to the front door. I knocked, and nobody answered. I knew he wouldn't answer, as he wasn't expecting us home for maybe another couple of days. Sighing, I pulled my keys out of my pocked and unlocked the door. The hall light was off, and I called Jacob's name.

Still no answer… huh.

I put the suitcase in my bedroom and then quickly ran out into the night and grabbed the remaining contents of the trunk and closed it. Once inside, I set everything on the couch and grabbed the house phone. We had two messages, but I ignored them and dialed Jacob's cell number. I got one ring and the answering machine. _"Hey, you've reached Jacob Black. Leave a message!" _I rolled my eyes and slammed it on the charging dock. It was ten forty-five, where could he be?

Adaline came into the living room. "Hey, Mom?" she asked.

"Yes, Darling?"

"Would you read to me?"

"Of course, Darling," I sighed. I needed to take my mind off of the whole Jacob-isn't-here issue.

I guided her into her bedroom and picked Harry Potter from the shelf and opened the flap to where we had left off. We got to the bit where Percy runs into his family before I heard her snoring. I chuckled and put the bookmark in and set it on the table.

I decided that I would call Jacob again. And I got his voicemail; again. Glancing at the clock, I saw that it was now half past eleven. He had better be either bleeding in the street, dead, sick, or dying.

To make myself busy, I started a load of laundry. And then I cleaned the kitchen. All in the dark, might I add, as the electric bill was running higher than I liked it to and I had no need for the light. But anyway, Jacob did not show up. When the couch was clear of all of the remnants of our trip, I sat on it and started to tap my foot, impatient. I could have sat like that for three minutes or three hours, I didn't know, but finally I heard Jacob's car pull into the drive way.

When the door opened, I almost let out a sigh of relief – he was okay. But then I saw his silhouette. It depicted pulling in behind him a woman, who was giggling.

This could not be happening.

Because I didn't know what else to do, I went silently to our bedroom and just… sat there. I didn't look at anything, I didn't think about anything. Once again, I could have sat there on the bed for three minutes or three hours – although I was more than willing to bet it was only three minutes. But then the light clicked on, and I heard that _obnoxious_ giggling come to an abrupt stop.

"Jake, who's that?"

My eyes were closed, and all I could do was imagine the look on Jacob's face.

"She's… um… my sister."

And then I awoke with a vengeance. Hopping off the bed, I jammed my finger in his face.

"Your _sister?_ How could you, Jake… That's a wretched lie. I always knew you were a crap liar."

He looked panicked as he let _her_ hand drop. "Bella, sweetie, I can explain-"

"No, how about you just sit down and shut up?" I said, trying to keep my voice under control. "You're a jerk, I'm an idiot, and she's just an innocent bystander. I got that," I said as I slapped him across the face. He winced; his… _partner_ winced, and then she raised her voice. It was like a Barbie Dolls voice. Surprise, surprise.

"Does somebody want to tell me what's going on?"

I never took my eyes off of Jacob. "I'm Bella Swan. And _he_ is my husband."

She gasped.

"Oh, my gosh. Oh, my gosh. I am _so_ sorry, Mrs. Swan. He... he told me he was single, holy crap… I am _so_ sorry… Oh, my freaking gosh…" she said, rambling on.

I put my hand up to silence her. "Don't worry about it. I understand. And if you could, please try to keep it down. I don't want our daughter to wake up." My voice was full of venom. Her eyes grew huge, and she whispered, "Daughter..?" but quickly composed herself. "I'll leave, I swear. I just want to do one thing," she said, and before I could stop her, she slapped Jacob across the face. Which definitely hurt her more than it hurt him, but I appreciated the effort.

Jacob put his hand out to stop her, saying, "Monique!"

"Let her go, Jacob."

I guess he didn't realize that he had _me_ to deal with. Oh, this was going to be a picnic.

I just stared at him with evil eyes until I heard the front door slam. He slowly turned to me. "Bella, I am... _so_ sorry." He slowly picked my limp hand up and kissed it. I would have torn it from his hands, but there was something in his gaze that made me wonder what wonderful plan he had.

The next short sentence was only a whisper, but I heard it. And it crushed me.

"She's my imprint."

I knew it shouldn't have caught me so off guard. But it did.

All of a sudden, I started… _bawling._ (Well, dry-sobbing. But you get the idea.) He immediately pulled me into a hug, and for now, it felt alright. I hated him, I hated _her,_ and I hated myself. But it felt alright.

He kept stroking my hair and whispering, "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry." We stood like that for the longest time until finally I said, "I should go… go get Monique." I did my best to keep my voice civil when I spoke her name. "And then… I'll go. I'll leave." I said, sniffing. This was hard, too. Because I realized that I wouldn't have Jacob around to be my best friend. And that hurt. Second only to Adaline, which hurt even more.

"But where, Bella? Where are you going to go?"

"I'll go to Angela's. For now. And after that, maybe I'll try Forks again." It would be a good place to go – I knew nobody there as the school had been massacred years ago. And Charlie… he was probably dead, too. I winced ever so slightly.

He nodded. "And Adaline? What about her?"

I cringed. What would happen to her? And even as I thought that, I knew the answer. When we had signed for Adaline, all those years ago, I remember when Jacob had told me that she had to be under the care of a legally married couple. That certainly was not the case with me, or it wouldn't be, anyway, and I knew what would happen with Jacob and Monique.

But would the Adoption Centre even _care? _Yeah. They would. We still got phone calls making sure everything was all right. Shea wouldn't be too happy if she just… disappeared. So…

"She'll stay here," I whispered. Those words were _so_ hard to force out of my lips. I almost didn't want to say them, but I knew that she would have to go back to Shea if I didn't. And I didn't want that. He nodded, seeming to know what I was thinking. "But when you get married again," Jacob said, "She'll come and live with you."

"I'm not getting married again, Jake." I sighed. But then when the second part of the sentenced processed through my brain, I gasped, appalled. Was he really that willing to give his daughter up?

"Bella…" He muttered. "We both know that you're her favorite."

And I had to laugh at that. Because that was all I had – the fact that she would prefer to be with me all the while she was with them. Because I knew this, then I might be able to get by. Maybe.

I sighed and reached to pull the ring off of my finger. I placed it in his palm and kissed him on the cheek. "Goodbye, Jacob," I said as I slowly walked into my daughter's bedroom. I kissed her on the cheek and whispered, "I love you, Addie. I love you so much." I couldn't stand to say goodbye – I had to believe it wasn't a goodbye. Just sort of a… see you later.

I then ran out the door down the road, away from one of the only things that put purpose into my life: Adaline.

I easily found Monique. She was walking down the long driveway, crying. I coughed, so she knew I was there, and tapped her on the shoulder. She turned to me, and when she saw my face she started to sob. In the midst of it, I heard apologies. I gently hugged her and patted her hair. "It's alright," I said, and she sniffed.

"But how can you think that? I almost slept with your _husband._"

I chuckled. "Yeah, I know."

"I'm not kidding! How are you just… _standing there? _And not beating the crap out of me?"

I started to laugh. "Listen, Monique… Just go to him. He's got one hell of a story for you."

She shook her head violently. "I can't do that. I can't trust him any more."

I smiled gently. "Yes, I know why you might think that. But really, he has a good intent. I promise, everything's perfectly okay. And if you want, I can ask you a favor for… almost sleeping with my husband, I guess."

"I'll do _anything._"

"Anything? Well, why don't you just go down there and listen to what he has to say? Please, Monique. It's really important. And after that, what you do next is up to you."

She didn't say anything, so I started to walk down the rest of the driveway, leaving her behind. I don't know if she followed me, I wasn't listening. I knew I had no reason to believe that she went back to Jacob, as nothing I said made any sense whatsoever. But that was okay… I didn't really care if she went to him. Alright, that's a lie. I hoped she did, because after all this time of me only half loving him, he deserved someone who would love him with all that she's got.

So I wasn't really mad at _Jacob_, per se. I was mad at the fact that he was a werewolf and that he could do this. I was mad at his stupid werewolf imprinting genes, because now I wouldn't be able to live with Adaline, and I was mad at myself. I should have been expecting it… After all, it had been about sixteen years since I had even met him again. I knew about the imprinting thing, and I knew that it was a possibility. But when we were together, I just sort of… forgot.

And then Adaline came into the picture. It never occurred to me that he would imprint with a child around. I had been blinded by my happiness… Ugh.

My beautiful Adaline. Who knew when the next time I would see her would be? That was a depressing thought. But the contents of my head just got more and more morbid until I realized I was on my way to Angela's house. I needed to see her right now, so I began running. And then I burst through her front door and started to dry-sob again.

**So was that amazing or what?**

**Just kidding, you guys. Seriously. Know that that's not exactly how I wanted it to go, but whatever. And guess what? Only one more chapter. I think. I combined like three chapters into one with this thing. Because I am super amazing. Like David A. **

**Read&Review. Because I know for a fact that you guys are capable of doing it.**

**Mary**


	21. Waiting in the Wings

**I have a cyst. So I'm in pain. So because of that, I'm not sure when I'll be able to put ****the sequel**** up. But keep an eye out, I get out of school in two more days.**

**I don't own.**

* * *

_**Angela **_

I flipped through the channels, sighing. There was never anything good on. My thoughts were interrupted by the front door being open. No, that's an under statement. The front door was practically ripped off of its hinges. But that wasn't important, as I saw and heard Bella sobbing in the doorway. Hurriedly I clicked the television off and looked at her, my eyes huge. She was home? Hm… Jacob had said that he didn't expect her for a few more days. But that didn't matter, as she was practically on the verge of tears.

"Bella? What's the matter?"

She just shook her head. I immediately went and hugged her, she clung to me. I felt sobs ripping down her body.

"C'mon," I whispered. Taking her hand, I guided her to the couch and sat her down. She dry-sobbed for quite a while, and when it didn't get any better, I looked her straight on.

"Bella, you're upset. I need you to tell me what's wrong."

She only blinked and buried her face in her hands. "Maybe I should slap her…" I muttered.

"No," she sniffed, having heard me. "I'm sorry. I'm just…" she sighed. "Ang, I'm leaving."

"Oh, well, we can talk about that late-" Wait a moment… "Bella, what are you talking about?"

"Just what I said, Ang. I'm going back to Forks."

I opened my mouth to object, but then snapped it shut with a pop. She had said this with so much certainty that I knew it would be impossible to change her mind – no matter how ridiculous the notion was. She was known in Forks for making decisions and going through with them, and it was almost 100 impossible to change her mind.

"So… What brought all of this on?"

She sighed deeply and threw herself back onto the couch with a huff. "Jacob met somebody."

In that one sentence, I knew what she was talking about immediately. How could he do that to her? I very nearly shouted. "What?"

Bella nodded and when she spoke, her voice broke.

"This is the second time, Angela. The second time."

"The second time, hon? He hasn't done this twice, has he?" I would kill him if he had. Honestly, I wanted to kill him anyway. When I saw my best friend reduced down to imaginary tears…

She shook her head. "No, that isn't what I meant," she whispered.

And then it came to me. I remember at school, she was so… depressed. It was like she was s zombie. She never cried, at least out in the open.

"Oh," I said. When Edward had left… That must have been twenty times as hard. I still saw her staring out the window, writing in the fog with her pinkie. It had always said 'I miss you.'

"Is this always going to happen to me?"

"What do you mean?" I was surprised by her question.

"Am I always going to bet hurt by people? Is that why I was put on the Earth? Doomed to suffer like this until the end of eternity?"

"No, of course not, honey."

"Why does it keep happening?"

"I don't know."

"I hate this. Every time I really start to love somebody, they get taken away from me."

Do you still miss him, Bella?" I asked, breaking the silence. She knew I wasn't talking about Jacob.

"Do you miss Ben?" she asked me. And that struck a nerve, as I'm sure my question did in her. Of course I missed him. Well, there was my answer.

"I'm sorry... That was harsh," Bella said. "But yes. I do miss him. I miss him so much." Her voice was soft. "Much more than I like to let anybody know... Is it really that obvious?"

"Not exactly... I just pay attention."

When Bella spoke next, her voice was flat, and it held no emotion. "Her name is Monique. She's actually a very nice person. Well, from what I can tell anyway."

I was grateful for the abrupt change of subject, although I felt bad now. That was a hard subject for her. But anyway... she was very nice. Right. "Bella, is this the woman that your husband cheated on you with?" I asked, and my eyebrows were raised.

Bella laughed, but it was weak and sad sounding. "Well, actually… yes."

I stared at her. "Bella… are you feeling alright?"

She smiled faintly. "I am. I promise. I'm just… irritated. That's all."

Well, yeah. I could understand that. "But isn't irritated the wrong word, Bella?"

"Well… sort of. But not exactly, no. See, Angela… He imprinted." When the words left her mouth, I could see that she was breathing in and out very deeply. And all I could say was "…Oh."

She nodded grimly. "'Oh' just about sums it up, I think."

"Bella, I am so sorry," I said as I hugged her again.

"Angela, do you know what this means?" she asked me, her voice slightly higher. I thought about it for a minute, but nothing came to mind. "No, actually. Should I?"

As she answered her eyes were fixated on her necklace that she held in her hands. This was the first time that I had ever seen the brilliant heart shaped crystal leave her neck since she got it as an anonymous gift.

"I have to leave my baby here."

"Oh, no… Bella."

I didn't know what else to say. But she broke the silence when she said, "So… yeah. I'm leaving. And I guess what I came to do is say goodbye."

"But, Bella… Why don't I just come with you?"

She shook her head. "No, Angela. I want you to, but at the same time I need you to stay here. To look after Adaline. Please? I can't take her with me, and I know that Jacob might loose it again. I need you to, Angela," she whimpered. I couldn't argue with that, so I threw my arms around her. "I'm going to miss you, Bella."

"Me, too."

"But hey," I said with a chuckle. "There's always holidays. Vacations, you know. Never know when you'll want to catch some sun, the way it's buried somewhere in the rain. I wonder if it's still there."

Bella smiled at my lame attempt at humor. "Thanks, Angela. I'll come. And you should come visit me, too."

"I'd like that."

She sniffed and said, "I should probably go."

"If you think that that's best," I said with a sigh.

"I do, Angela. I really do."

But then I realized that she didn't have a car. So… "Well, at least take my car," I insisted. Her eyes went wide as she said, "Oh, no! Angela, I couldn't!"

"Of course you could. I don't really need it, and it would be more comfortable for you."

Now it was my turn to decide. She saw that I wasn't going to change my mind about her taking it, but I saw that she was a bit troubled with the gift.

"If you want," I offered, "I can take it back when I come to visit you."

She smiled. "Well, when you put it like that…"

"Now… Go on, go to Forks. Leave me like we both know you want to." I said, teasing just a little bit as we stood inside the door.

"I'm going to miss you, Angela. Really."

"Me too, Bella. Now, you're sure you have everything? Credit cards so you can get a place?"

"Positive."

"Well… I guess I'll see you. Call me when you get into town, alright?"

"I will." She stepped out of the front hall and outside. "Love you, Angela."

I smiled. "Love you, too."

But before I could say anything else, I heard the gentle purr of the engine. I smiled sadly and watched her pull away. She was waving, and I waved back.

I watched the car until it was but a dot, and then… she was gone.

I trudged inside and sat down on the couch. Great, I thought grimly. Now I'll have to find a new best friend. Like that would ever happen.

After a while, I stood up and started walking to my room, my fingers trailing the wall that was a light ecru. I chuckled; Bella and I were planning on painting over that. But it was too late now.

When I was in my room, a folded up business card caught my eye. It was crinkled and torn around the edges and wedged in between the crack that my mirror and its frame created. And then after I unfolded it, I gasped and staggered back.

It was the card that I had received after Jacob Black had married Bella, the card that held Edward's phone number. And then I thought, Crap. I'm such an idiot! Why hadn't I thought of it when Bella had been here?

He had actually been here when Bella was out with Adaline. She never saw him, never knew that he was here. And it killed me to keep that secret, but he had made me promise.

"Bella must not know that I've been here, Angela. I can't take that happiness away from here – don't you see that?"

And I'll admit; I did see why he was making such a big fuss about keeping secretive. But when I tried to explain to him that she was still in pain, he refused to believe it.

I remember when he first came here, after Bella and Jacob had gone home after their marriage. I thought that it was just Bella coming back to get something she had left behind, but when I opened the door, Edward was standing there. I know it had been a while since I had seen him last, and human memories fade fast, but Edward Cullen was not somebody that you forgot about, not by a long shot.

We talked mainly about Bella. He made me promise to protect her, and I swore that I would do my best. His parting words were "Call me if she needs me." He said that every single time and they were the same words. "Call me if she needs me."

I had reason to believe that she needed him now.

Without hesitation I double checked the crumpled stock paper, picked up the phone and dialed the number. It rang twice and then he picked it up.

"Angela?" Confusion colored his voice. "Is something wrong?"

"Yes, Edward. It's Bella."

There was a sharp intake of breath on the other line, and he composed himself. "What happened?" His voice was strained, oddly high.

"Before you get an ulcer, she's fine; at least physically."

"Oh…" He was even more confused than he was before. "Well, what is it? Is there something I can do?"

"Actually, Edward, there is. Bella was out of town with A-" I stopped myself. He would only see her when she was out of the house, alone, because he didn't want to see her with Jacob. This, in turn, meant that he did not know about Adaline. Somehow I got the feeling that she would want to keep her a secret. "… with a friend. And when she came home, Jacob had imprinted."

Edward immediately started to growl. "I'll kill him."

Nervously, I chuckled. "No need for that now," I said, even though I knew exactly what he meant. When I saw Bella like that, I wanted to rip his throat out. But that would upset her even more.

The other line was quiet until he spoke. "Let me talk to her."

"Well, that's what I'm calling about. She isn't here."

"What?" he asked. Or rather… yelled. "Where did she go?"

"Forks."

"Oh." he said, apparently surprised. "Is there any particular reason why she went there?"

"Well… aside from the cloud-cover, I don't think so. She just wanted to get away."

"From what, exactly?"

"Away from Jacob, I'm assuming."

Again with that wretched growling. "I'll kill him, I swear it. He hurt Bella, _I will kill him_."

I had to stop him. "No, Edward. Bella needs you now. And I mean right now. So you won't have time to murder the dog."

Silence, again. When he did speak, his voice was... strained, as if he were choking on what his next sentence was. "Angela, what if… what if she doesn't want me?"

I couldn't help myself, but I choked on my laughter. Our conversation earlier told me that she would want him. "Don't worry. She'll want you to. Go to Forks, be with Bella."

His voice was hard to describe. "Thank you, Angela. I'll be there as soon as I can."

"Good luck, Edward. Not that you'll need it. And hurry," I added, "You've been waiting in the wings for much too long now. It's time that came to an end."

Before he could say another word, I hung the phone up, deciding that I needed to let him get on with whatever he needed to do that involved Bella, and waited.

* * *

**Fin.**

**WE'RE BROOTHERS TIL THE END OF TIIMEE!!**

**(American Idol thing. I love that guy.) **


	22. We're Finnished!

**Hey Guys!**

Mary here. I just wanted to let you know that Waiting in the Wings II (title subject to change) Chapter One is out! Yay! (if you read the first chapter, I replaced it with one that was like twice as long and ten times as better. After all, first versions are always worse than second ones! Some famous guy said that but I can't remember who and exactly what he said. Enjoy anyway.)

Other than the sequel, I am currently working on replacing all of my chapters and erasing all of the author's notes. So if you want to go back and re-read (which is what I am going to do because honestly I can't remember what I wrote), then they are going to be GONE. Why didn't you guys tell me I was so annoying? LOL! Oh, and about disclaimers. I am going to make sure that _those_ are on every chapter.

And also, I wanted to give a HUGE _thank you___to each and every one of you. (If you thought that it was rubbish, you don't count.) Just joking!Thank you _especially_ if you thought that it was rubbish. You gave me ways to improve my writing and that has helped me so much. Thank you for sticking with me throughout Waiting in the Wings, and I hope you enjoy the second one. If you didn't, lie and make something up.

;)

MaryBelle


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